Deloitte Access Economics said Australia has a short window to become a regional hub for AI infrastructure but could fall behind without faster investment and policy action.
Australia needs about A$52 billion (US$36.27 billion) by 2030 for digital infrastructure, and said it would need to double investment in compute power over the next five years.
Australia is on track for about 3.3 gigawatts of data center capacity by 2030 but would need another 3.1 gigawatts of compute power, while warning other countries are moving faster to build infrastructure pipelines.
Expanding beyond current plans could add A$134 billion (US$93.46 billion) to the economy by 2050 and support an annual average of 14,300 extra jobs, and said policymakers should ensure regulatory settings support investment in data, clean energy, and planning.
🔗 Source: Bloomberg
Originally written by: Minh Le
Source: Tech in Asia
Published on: 25 March 2026
Link to original article: AI infra gap could cost Australia growth, Deloitte says
