Many people consider AI to be a bubble — and when this finally pops the survivors will be those that have successfully managed costs. I have written about Groq before on PhilSTAR Tech, responsible for driving down the costs of inference in AI. Inference is the “doing” part of Artificial Intelligence. Once you have trained your data, inference is AI in action. Hyperscalers like Google and OpenAI are losing money and can afford to do so, because the actual costs are too high for regular consumers to manage. Groq significantly lessens these costs for non hyperscaler companies — for the SME’s and other small businesses that are building their home-grown AI strategy.
Groq, a global pioneer in AI inference, has expanded its global AI infrastructure footprint to the Asia-Pacific region through its deployment in Equinix’s International Business Exchange™ (IBX®) data center in Sydney, Australia. Following launches in the US and EMEA, the collaboration brings Groq’s fast, low-cost and scalable LPU Inference Engine closer to organizations and the public sector in the Philippines and the wider Asia-Pacific region.
Under this partnership, Groq and Equinix will establish one of the largest high-speed AI inference infrastructure sites in the country with a 4.5MW Groq facility in Sydney, offering up to 5x faster and lower cost compute power than traditional GPUs and hyperscaler clouds. Leveraging Equinix Fabric®, a software-defined interconnection service, organizations in Asia-Pacific will benefit from secure, low-latency, high-speed interconnectivity, ensuring seamless access to GroqCloud™ for production AI workloads, ensuring full control and compliance.
The demand and adoption of AI-driven solutions continue to grow in Asia-Pacific. According to IDC’s latest Worldwide AI and Generative AI Spending Guide, AI and Generative AI (GenAI) investments in the region are projected to reach US$110 billion by 2028, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24.0% from 2023 to 2028.[1]
By combining Groq’s cutting-edge AI inference technology with Equinix’s global infrastructure and vendor-neutral connectivity solutions, organizations can efficiently scale their AI workloads while maintaining cost-effectiveness and speed.
Innovations in inference around the region
The Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, starting with Australia, is poised to become a global powerhouse for Artificial Intelligence (AI) innovation, driven by a critical partnership focused on expanding access to high-performance computing. This initiative directly addresses a global shortage of the necessary compute infrastructure required for widespread AI development.
This push is fundamentally rooted in empowering human ingenuity. As Cliff Obrecht, Co-Founder and COO of Canva, notes, “We’re entering a new era where technology has the potential to massively accelerate human creativity.” He emphasizes that with Australia’s growing strength in AI and compute, the goal is to “continu[e] to empower more than 260 million people to bring their ideas to life in entirely new ways.”
The foundational issue, however, has been the scarcity of computational power. Jonathan Ross, CEO and Founder of Groq, plainly states the challenge: “The world doesn’t have enough compute for everyone to build AI.” This is the gap that Groq and its partner Equinix are immediately addressing, commencing their expansion efforts in Australia.
For Groq, the APAC region is already vital. Scott Albin, General Manager, APAC, Groq, highlights that over half of Groq’s global developers are based there. The deployment in an Equinix Sydney data center represents the crucial first step to “bring high-performance, cost-efficient AI inference closer to the region.” This infrastructure is designed not just for speed, but also to support local compliance, “enabling secure, low-latency access while supporting data sovereignty and privacy.”
Equinix is playing a key role in rapidly scaling this infrastructure. Cyrus Adaggra, President, Asia-Pacific, Equinix, states that Groq is a “pioneer in AI inference,” and Equinix is enabling them to quickly deploy their high-performance systems globally. Equinix’s extensive ecosystems and global footprint serve as a vital “connectivity gateway to their customers and enable efficient enterprise AI workflows at scale.”
In summary, this strategic expansion is setting the groundwork for significant AI growth. By democratizing access to powerful compute, this partnership is not just scaling infrastructure; it’s building the foundation to fuel innovation, accelerate creativity, and position APAC at the forefront of the new AI-driven global economy.
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