With a particular focus on London and Manchester, Bruce Owen, President of Equinix, explores the importance of technology in modern life, highlighting opportunities for growing the digital economy in the UK
Technology has become so infused in modern life that it’s easy to take it for granted. Smartphones put the world at our fingertips, connecting us with family and friends at a distance and providing instant access to information on every topic imaginable. Through advancements in AI, we’ve built intelligence into everyday devices like our watches, refrigerators, lightbulbs, cars, and vacuum cleaners. Technology helps us monitor our health, learn faster, shop smarter, work remotely, and save time and energy on mundane tasks – among many other possibilities. We are truly living in an intelligent age. Let’s focus on the opportunity that the UK offers to grow the digital economy.
London: Europe’s cloud and finance hub
London is widely recognized as Europe’s leading financial, telecommunications, and technology hub. It’s no surprise that it’s also Europe’s biggest data center market and has attracted global hyperscalers. Cloud on-ramps to all major providers are hosted throughout Greater London. Digital businesses can get on-demand access to flexible infrastructure, all while tapping into one of Europe’s largest population centers.
The city also occupies a key place in the history of digital infrastructure. The first subsea cables were launched in the 1850s between Dover and Calais, thus enabling direct connectivity between London and Paris. This makes London one of the birthplaces of global telecommunications. Many years later, London remains firmly connected with Paris – and with other core cities like Amsterdam and Frankfurt – along Europe’s most important digital corridor.
For financial firms operating in Europe, deploying in London is non-negotiable. In particular, trading firms must get as close as possible to the action, and that action happens in London. Even a few nanoseconds of latency could mean the difference between a successful trade and a missed opportunity for these firms. They need to place their workloads in proximity to financial exchanges in London so that their data traffic won’t have to cover long distances every time they execute a trade.
The value of London as a digital hub is clear, and we at Equinix are very familiar with that value. We operate many colocation and hyperscale data centers throughout Greater London to help our customers take advantage of everything this thriving market offers. That said, it would be short-sighted to think London is the only place to deploy in Europe. Even within the UK, emerging markets merit attention from any digital business looking to expand, and Manchester is chief among them.
Manchester: From Industrial Revolution to digital revolution
As the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, Manchester has a long tradition of being the first to implement world-changing ideas. Another example is the Williams tube, the world’s first RAM storage device, which was developed at the University of Manchester in the 1940s. Researchers at the university also developed the Manchester Baby, the world’s first electronic computer capable of running stored programs, as a proof-of-concept for the Williams tube.
Today, this tradition of innovation continues. The city is home to a thriving digital economy, valued at over £5 billion and employing over 88,000 people. 2 The UK Government has prioritized investing in digital growth, and Manchester has benefited greatly from this focus. 3 Thanks to this investment – not to mention forward-thinking leadership and a strong pipeline of talent from local universities – Greater Manchester has birthed more than 1,600 tech startups 4 while also attracting top global brands.
In particular, Manchester is among the European content and digital media leaders. The city is home to MediaCityUK, Europe’s first and largest purpose-built digital media hub. 5 Major media organizations like the BBC and ITV have a presence at MediaCityUK, and a robust local ecosystem of data centers and content distribution networks has formed to support them. Any European business that relies on getting content in front of eyeballs cannot afford to ignore Manchester for the simple reason that there are a lot of eyeballs to be found there: The city is the gateway to North West England, a region of more than seven million people.
Manchester and London are not in competition with one another – at least not when it comes to data centers. Each city’s proximity to the other is a tremendous asset. The fact that low-latency connectivity is readily available between them means that many businesses are choosing a dual-deployment strategy. For instance, in a post-Brexit world, the UK has data standards that are different from those of the rest of Europe. Deploying in both London and Manchester can help businesses establish geo-redundancy for sensitive data while also meeting their data sovereignty requirements. To support these customers, we currently operate four Equinix IBX® colocation data centers in Manchester.
Data centers are essential – as are the people who run them
In 2024, the UK Government announced that data centers would be classified as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), the same designation already given to water, energy, and emergency services systems. 6 This is the clearest signal yet that the government understands the importance of data centers and is willing to do what it takes to keep them running. This announcement will help multinational businesses feel confident that deploying in the UK is a safe bet.
If data centers are essential to the UK digital economy, then the country can’t afford to overlook the people who keep data centers running. We don’t have to look very far back for an example of how important these workers can be. The UK was among the first jurisdictions to classify data center staff as essential during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. 7 As the nation shifted to virtual work and schooling, data center professionals were there to ensure the backbone of the internet functioned properly despite the massive spike in demand.
It’s essential that we invest in the next generation of data center workers to prepare for any future challenges the nation might face – and any future opportunities. One way we’re doing that at Equinix is through our apprenticeship program. This program helps UK students from diverse backgrounds prepare for careers in the data center industry.
The program is the first of its kind in the data center industry, and we’re proud of the results we’ve achieved so far. We plan to expand the program to Manchester to help increase the pool of experienced data center workers there. We’re in conversations with local universities about hosting the program as we look to replicate our success in the South.
Customized infrastructure with direct cloud access, built for your AI needs
Discover infrastructure built for any cloud that is hybrid-ready and optimized for scaling AI. LEARN MORE
Renewable energy technicians enable our digital future
One can’t discuss reliable digital infrastructure without mentioning renewable energy. Data centers require energy, and data center operators should, therefore, invest in renewable energy production. Equinix’s data centers have 100% renewable coverage throughout Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. We’ve achieved this via a multifaceted renewable energy strategy that includes power purchase agreements (PPAs). These PPAs support new renewable energy developments such as wind and solar, which means they directly contribute to adding new renewable energy to the grid.
We’re encouraged by the UK’s success in its renewable energy transition, particularly when it comes to wind energy. The UK climate is among the best in the world for wind energy production, and the nation is taking full advantage of that. Although the UK’s first commercial wind farm only came online in 1991 8, production has scaled considerably in the decades since. This is one reason the UK was able to take its last coal power plant offline in 2024. 9
As the UK continues to deploy new wind turbines, the number of wind turbine technicians (often called ‘windtechs’) must scale accordingly. Windtechs perform regular inspections, lubricate moving parts, and replace worn or malfunctioning components. They must climb turbines to perform their duties, so it’s not a job for those with a fear of heights. Also, maintaining offshore wind farms can take windtechs away from home for days or even weeks at a time. This lifestyle isn’t right for everyone.
The challenges of filling the need for windtechs are clear, but so too are the opportunities for those who seek them.
Technical schools offer programs that can help aspiring windtechs get started quickly, and motivated candidates can find employers that provide on-the-job training. They’ll also get the satisfaction that comes from knowing that they’re enabling the UK’s renewable energy transition and, with it, the country’s digital future.
Increased demand for data center services in the UK is creating new career opportunities in different ways. The technicians that run data centers and the windtechs that help keep them fully powered are just two examples.
