Could Data Centres Become Obsolete?

AI Decoded looks at the surprising alliance between Meta and Apple, which raises one of the biggest questions facing the AI industry. As technology companies invest hundreds of billions into ever-larger data centres, the two Silicon Valley rivals are backing a different vision: powerful AI models that can run locally on advanced desktop computers rather than relying entirely on the cloud.

For years, bigger AI has meant bigger infrastructure. Vast data centres now consume enormous amounts of energy, water and land, while communities around the world are increasingly pushing back against their expansion. But what if there was another way? What if businesses could run powerful AI systems from their own offices, on machines sitting beneath their desks?

Host Marc Cieslak is joined by Dr Stephanie Hare, AI expert and author of Technology is Not Neutral, Ben Hatton, consumer technology specialist and AI commentator, and Nate Soares, AI safety researcher and author, for a fascinating discussion on whether Apple's hardware and Meta's open-weight AI strategy could signal a major shift in the future of computing.