Global Scans · Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure · Weekly Summary

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these Goals are completed, it would mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.
Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.

• [New] The 2026-2030 five-year plan emphasises support for industrial and technological development, particularly artificial intelligence, 6G technology, robotics, quantum computing and industries supporting the green transition. / China BOFIT
• [New] AI infrastructure is driving major growth: Data center systems are projected to grow 55.8% in 2026, supported by AI workloads, high-performance compute demand, and advanced memory. Campus Technology
• [New] Musk has successfully led SpaceX to become an industry leader, yet the short-termism often associated with public listings could erode SpaceX's foundational strengths. tradingkey.com
• [New] As Southeast Asia's largest digital economy, valued at $130 billion in 2025 and projected to reach $360 billion by 2030 - Indonesia has simultaneously become a powerhouse for digital innovation and a prime target for cyber threats. IndoSec
• [New] Veolia markets AnoxKaldnes MBBR as a biological wastewater treatment process for the municipal and industrial sectors, emphasizing BOD, ammonia, and nitrogen removal, retrofit potential, a compact footprint, and suitability for tertiary use. Tank Transport
• [New] Oracle says its New Mexico Project Jupiter campus will not use the local public drinking-water system for cooling, will rely on non-potable industrial well water under contract, and will use direct-to-chip, closed-loop, non-evaporative cooling. Tank Transport
• [New] We expect the natural gas-weighted manufacturing index to increase by 1.5% in 2026 and 0.7% in 2027, contributing to slightly higher industrial natural gas consumption over the next two years. EIA - Energy Information Administration
• [New] Microsoft, Oracle, Google, Amazon, and Meta alone are spending hundreds of billions on AI infrastructure that will approach $1.1 trillion by 2027. / USA investing.com
• [New] More than 100 TWh of new electricity demand is expected to arrive by 2030, driven by data centers, electric vehicles (EVs), and industrial clusters. Bain & Company
• [New] DOE's Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research will award an additional $13.5 million over three years for efforts to use computer-based models and networking infrastructure to help research facilities across the nation collaborate and accelerate scientific discovery. Energy.gov
• [New] Disruptions to the supply of helium and fertilisers could generate knock-on effects across global production chains, including in the strategically important semiconductor industry, while weighing on food affordability. Economy and Finance
• [New] A decade of supply chain disruption, cyberattacks, geopolitical instability and regulatory divergence has exposed how deeply Europe depends on infrastructure, platforms and suppliers beyond its direct control. Kyndryl
• [New] Industrial decarbonization and green fuel investments drive hydrogen production applications to experience their fastest growth rate through 2035. Transpire Insight
• [New] By 2026, AI will no longer be a novel innovation in the experimentation stage. Aralia Education
• [New] The Russia-Ukraine energy crisis demonstrated how imported natural gas dependence creates financial and industrial dangers which particularly affect energy-intensive industries that include chemicals production, steel manufacturing, and advanced manufacturing processes. Transpire Insight
• [New] South Korea: Demand for frictionless retail technologies in South Korea is forecast to expand at 19.4% CAGR through 2036, supported by advanced smart retail infrastructure, strong digital payment adoption, AI-enabled customer analytics, and growing deployment of autonomous convenience stores. FactMr
• [New] Demand for frictionless retail infrastructure solutions is projected to grow to USD 12.3 billion in 2026 and reach USD 83.0 billion by 2036. FactMr
• [New] A major focus area in 2026 will be India's growing leadership in artificial intelligence, including discussions around indigenous AI infrastructure, language models, AI-native enterprises, and strategic technology capabilities. Machine Maker - Latest Manufacturing News | Indian Manu
• [New] The summit agenda will focus on sectors shaping India's future innovation landscape including artificial intelligence, DeepTech, biotechnology, quantum computing, space technologies, D2C brands, and Bharat-focused innovation models. Machine Maker - Latest Manufacturing News | Indian Manu
• [New] Europe's electric vehicle industry has already committed more than €200 billion (£171 billion) to factories, batteries and charging infrastructure, even as politicians debate weakening the EU's 2035 petrol and diesel car ban. ""
• [New] The ADB has launched a $70bn programme to expand energy and digital infrastructure across Asia-Pacific by 2035. TEAM LEWIS UK | London
• [New] By 2030, data centers will require US$ 6.7 trillion of capex globally, with US$ 5.2 trillion for AI capable capacity, shifting an increasing share of digital infrastructure spend into the compute layer (GPUs / servers etc.), where refresh cycles are shorter than the underlying real estate and power. Clifford Chance

Last updated: 24 May 2026