Trend · rank 133 of 250

Compute scaling & AI infrastructure

The build-out of accelerators, data centres and interconnects for training and running AI keeps expanding, concentrating capability in nations and firms able to finance, power and supply it.

Critical TechnologyAI, compute & quantumaicomputepower

Second pass: Carried forward from the first pass unchanged. Held by all three panel models.

Sensitivity and network position

Rank
133of 250
Sensitivity
9.2rank 120
Breadth
1of 20 scenarios High or above
PageRank
33.3rank 129
Eigenvector
0.9
Betweenness
12.7
Links
11trends at Moderate similarity or above
Composite
19.6

Attention over three years

How much this trend is read about on Wikipedia and searched for on Google, week by week, set against the typical trend in the list so that what moves every trend at once is taken out. 100 is this trend's own three-year average. The score measures public attention, which is not the same as the strength of the force: a trend can deepen unnoticed, and a news event can lift attention for a fortnight.

Now
222
Over a year
+88%Surging
Over three years
+203%
Peak
2539 Aug 2026
Sources
Bothagreement 0.95
Coverage
4languages · 51 nations

Trailing 4-week average. 100 is this trend’s three-year average.

By language

Wikipedia reading in each language edition where the trend’s pages are read enough to measure (4 of 28). Share is of all the readers counted.

LanguageShareNowOver a yearThree years
English92%216+76%
French5%225+246%
Chinese2%164+94%
Portuguese1%137+18%

By country

Google search interest over the three years, as a share of each country’s searching. 100 is the nation where interest is highest. The search terms are English, which favours countries that search in English.

Singapore

South Korea

United States

United Arab Emirates

Malaysia

Netherlands

Canada

Taiwan

Switzerland

United Kingdom

Australia

Ireland

100

83

49

36

32

31

26

24

20

20

19

18

The 12 highest of 51 nations with a reading.

By region and G20 member

Attention to this trend inside each place, from Google searches made in its countries and Wikipedia reading in the languages mostly read there, averaged where both exist. Each line compares the trend with its own past in that place; the lines do not compare places.

Regions

PlaceRead fromNow90 days1 year3 yearsThree years
North AmericaGoogle in 2 countries + Wikipedia in English232+18%+106%+471%
EuropeGoogle in 9 countries + Wikipedia in French204+5%+183%+247%
ChinaGoogle in 1 country154−5%+64%+83%
Indo-PacificGoogle in 11 countries + Wikipedia in Chinese174−2%+110%+203%
South AsiaGoogle in 4 countries176−17%+130%+237%
Gulf and Middle EastGoogle in 5 countries141−16%+54%+146%
AfricaGoogle in 4 countries170−10%+128%+248%
Latin America and CaribbeanGoogle in 6 countries + Wikipedia in Portuguese154−3%+68%+166%
Russia and EurasiaGoogle in 1 country186−32%+839%+794%

G20 members

PlaceRead fromNow90 days1 year3 yearsThree years
ArgentinaGoogle157−16%+155%+143%
AustraliaGoogle183−45%+218%+395%
BrazilGoogle + Wikipedia in Portuguese169+2%+81%+239%
CanadaGoogle240+1%+215%+456%
ChinaGoogle154−5%+64%+83%
FranceGoogle + Wikipedia in French209+7%+197%+266%
GermanyGoogle171−13%+100%+197%
IndiaGoogle156−24%+73%+212%
IndonesiaGoogle168+34%+92%+113%
ItalyGoogle204−3%+164%+416%
JapanGoogle165−34%+104%+236%
South KoreaGoogle173−26%+96%+203%
MexicoGoogle165−16%+123%+144%
Saudi ArabiaGoogle137−10%+42%+126%
South AfricaGoogle172−8%+132%+258%
TürkiyeGoogle160−22%+103%+275%
United KingdomGoogle258+24%+239%+531%
United StatesGoogle + Wikipedia in English233+22%+99%+473%

Relation to each scenario

A trend relates to a scenario when it changes how likely the scenario is, how hard it lands, or is itself sharply changed by it. Each score is the median of three scores given separately by the members of the model panel.

RelationScenarioFamily
4 · HighAn AI deployment step causes abrupt labour displacement S08Technology and infrastructure
3 · ModerateAI-directed research produces a reproducible discovery step S17 ↗Technology and infrastructure
2 · LowCheap firm clean power becomes available at scale S15 ↗Energy, climate and resources
1 · Very lowCritical trade divides into rival blocs S01Economic and trade
1 · Very lowA great-power agreement lowers economic security barriers S13 ↗Geopolitical and security
0 · Not relatedA global funding seizure reaches sovereign balance sheets S02Economic and trade
0 · Not relatedA regional war closes a globally important sea route S03Geopolitical and security
0 · Not relatedHybrid coercion ends in an infrastructure blackout S04Geopolitical and security
0 · Not relatedA disputed transfer of power breaks effective government S05Geopolitical and security
0 · Not relatedTwo breadbasket failures trigger a food availability crisis S06Energy, climate and resources
0 · Not relatedA major disaster disables the national economic core S07Energy, climate and resources
0 · Not relatedA cryptographic breakthrough invalidates digital trust S09Technology and infrastructure
0 · Not relatedA novel respiratory pathogen exceeds health surge capacity S10Health
0 · Not relatedA creditor agreement releases fiscal capacity S11 ↗Economic and trade
0 · Not relatedA cross-regional market access compact redirects investment S12 ↗Economic and trade
0 · Not relatedA verified Middle East settlement restores access S14 ↗Geopolitical and security
0 · Not relatedA validated farming package raises water-efficient output S16 ↗Energy, climate and resources
0 · Not relatedA public service platform reaches inclusive operation S18 ↗Technology and infrastructure
0 · Not relatedAffordable preventive treatments reduce chronic illness S19 ↗Health
0 · Not relatedA live outbreak proves rapid distributed pandemic defence S20 ↗Health

Similarity = 0.3 × shared tags (Jaccard) + 0.3 × likeness of scenario profiles (cosine) + 0.3 × likeness of names and descriptions (TF-IDF cosine) + 0.1 if in the same capability domain, cut into seven levels at 0.12, 0.22, 0.33, 0.45, 0.58, 0.72. Shown at Moderate and above.

SimilarityTrendThemeRank
5 · Very highAI inference efficiencyAI, compute & quantum170
4 · HighAutomated AI researchAI, compute & quantum83
4 · HighGeneral-purpose AI capabilityAI, compute & quantum95
4 · HighAI chips & accelerator supplyAI, compute & quantum111
4 · HighOpen-weight AI diffusionAI, compute & quantum149
4 · HighFrontier model concentrationAI, compute & quantum168
3 · ModerateAI & knowledge-work automationPeople, health & work53
3 · ModerateCapital concentration in AIAI, compute & quantum67
3 · ModerateData-centre power & water demandEnergy, networks & climate resilience144
3 · ModerateAdvanced semiconductorsAI, compute & quantum165
3 · ModerateGeneral-purpose & humanoid roboticsAI, compute & quantum225