Brussels -- According to the European Commission, the number of broadband lines in the EU increased by 70 percent year-on-year to more than 40 million lines, according to the latest government figures. On average, more than 45,000 broadband lines were connected every day in the EU in 2004, a remarkable increase compared to the average of 29,000 lines per day recorded in 2003. EU Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding warned that many member states' performances have been patchy despite the fact that Europe's overall performance has been very strong. The Netherlands and Denmark lead the pack with penetration rates of 19 percent and 18 percent, respectively, but a second group of member states averages out at about 8 percent, while a third group has been unable to push its average rate above 6 percent, Reding said.
We're now witnessing a seismic shift, driven by the maturity and ubiquitous adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI). For years, AI was an application-layer phenomenon; a software challenge. Today, however, the focus has pivoted to the foundational, physical layer that powers it. The latest data from International Data Corporation (IDC) confirms what many in the business technology sector have observed firsthand: we are in the midst of an unprecedented infrastructure build-out, one that will redefine corporate IT investment strategy. The Applied-AI Initiative race is no longer merely to build an industry-leading AI model, but to possess the computational engine robust enough to train and deploy it at an exponential scale. AI Infrastructure Market Development The latest market study forecast is significant, painting a picture of an infrastructure gold rush defined by massive capital expenditure and rapid transformation. Firstly, the projected market spending on AI infrastructure wi...