Multinational Tech Giants Accelerate AI Data Center Expansion in Hong Kong
June 17, 2026
Multinational Tech Giants Accelerate AI Data Center Expansion in Hong Kong
International and Chinese mainland digital technology firms are ramping up data center investments in Hong Kong, betting that the city’s push to become an artificial intelligence hub will drive surging demand for computing power. The moves underscore Hong Kong’s growing role as a regional gateway for cross-border AI development and enterprise expansion.
On Tuesday, global digital infrastructure provider Equinix announced the opening of HK6, its sixth international business exchange data center in Hong Kong. The facility, backed by an initial investment of $124 million, represents the company’s single largest investment in the city over the past decade. Equinix said the facility will provide 1,000 cabinets in its first phase, with the potential to scale up to 3,550 cabinets at full build-out. The data center is equipped with liquid cooling technology to support high-density AI workloads.
HK6 is interconnected with Equinix’s existing campus as well as the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park, a cross-border initiative aimed at strengthening collaboration within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The company said this connectivity will allow enterprises and startups across the 11-city cluster to access shared opportunities and support research and development. The new facility also houses an AI Discovery Hub, developed in partnership with HPE and Nvidia, designed to provide companies an environment to build, test and scale AI applications across hybrid and multicloud systems.
Joanne Hon, Equinix’s managing director for Hong Kong, said, “HK6 is a clear testament of our long-term commitment to the market and our conviction in its trajectory.” She noted that the facility has already secured customer commitments, primarily from financial services companies, alongside cloud service providers and network operators. Healthcare firms have also shown interest, underscoring strong demand for AI infrastructure. Hon added that many multinational and local enterprises are in discussions with Equinix, citing Hong Kong’s role as a gateway for international and Asia-Pacific companies entering the Chinese mainland and for Chinese firms pursuing global expansion.
Separately on Tuesday, the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) and AI software company SenseTime signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly develop what they describe as the largest domestically built AI data center in Hong Kong. The facility targets a computing capacity of more than 40,000 petaflops by 2030, with its first phase planned for completion by the end of this year. The center will deploy domestically produced GPU clusters to support model training and large-scale AI applications in sectors including finance, healthcare and education.
Under Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Lillian Cheong Man-lei, said the project reflects closer collaboration between industry and research institutions and will support Hong Kong’s ambition to become an international innovation and technology hub. She added that the future completion of the Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster, which is expected to deliver up to 180,000 petaflops of computing power by 2032, together with the HKSTP-SenseTime project, would help advance both AI-focused industries and the adoption of AI in traditional sectors.
SenseTime CEO Xu Li emphasized a broader vision for AI infrastructure, stating, “Computing power today should not be viewed simply as infrastructure, but as part of a broader industrial service chain.” He explained that what is delivered to customers is not just a chip or basic processing capacity, but an integrated service designed to help them make more effective use of AI. Xu said Hong Kong could serve as a “super-connector” and “super-value-adder,” integrating AI models, GPU resources and related services developed on the Chinese mainland into comprehensive solutions and bringing them to overseas markets.
Source: chinadailyasia
