However, sovereign AI is not achieved simply by hosting data locally or building national data centres, according to the report. "Sovereign AI should be seen as a challenge that connects energy, computing capacity, data governance, AI models, cloud platforms and applications," noted the report. Gartner predicts nations establishing a sovereign AI stack will need to spend at least 1% of their GDP on AI infrastructure by 2029. Regulatory pressure, geopolitics, cloud localisation, national AI missions, corporate risks and national security concerns are driving governments and corporations to accelerate investment in sovereign AI. "Data centres and AI factory infrastructure form the critical backbone of the AI stack that enables AI sovereignty," he said.

Source: Bangkok Post March 22, 2026 23:18 UTC