Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant vision. It is becoming increasingly important in our professional and personal lives. It is reshaping innovation at an incredible pace and promising a future of efficiency and growth beyond anything we have imagined. But behind this progress lies a critical challenge: making telecoms networks ready.
The capacity crunch
AI workloads generate enormous volumes of data, often processed in real time. This surge is placing intense pressure on wholesale long-haul and metro networks, which are the lifeline of data centres.
Backbone fibre is the critical infrastructure that connects data centres across regions and continents. It delivers the ultra-high bandwidth and low latency required for real-time processing, ensuring AI workloads and cloud applications run without interruption. Unlike legacy systems, fibre offers scalability, reliability against interference, and the ability to transmit data over long distances with minimal signal loss.
According to recent industry research from Ciena and Heavy Reading, only 16% of telcos believe their networks are “very ready” for AI. A further 39% say they are “ready” but still need significant upgrades, while 40% classify themselves as “somewhat ready.” Alarmingly, 5% admit their optical networks are not ready at all.
This readiness gap highlights a fundamental issue that many of the UK’s existing fibre routes were built for a very different era centred around email, web browsing, and video streaming. These decades-old fibre infrastructures were not designed for the ultra-low latency and massive bandwidth demands of AI computing. Without urgent investment in backbone fibre, the UK risks falling behind in its AI ambitions.
Data centres are moving and networks must follow
To manage rising energy costs and cooling demands, data centres are shifting toward cooler, more cost-efficient regions. The scarcity and high price of land in London and the South East are pushing operators to look beyond traditional metro hubs.
The UK government’s AI Growth Zones strategy is accelerating this transition, offering incentives in regions such as Scotland, Cumbria, and the North East, where renewable energy is abundant and operational costs are lower. Major projects such as the £10bn AI data centre in Blyth highlight the shift toward rural, cooler environments.
But while relocation improves sustainability and reduces operating costs, it exposes the challenge of long-haul connectivity. Connecting these remote sites to core networks requires new backbone fibre routes and upgrades to existing infrastructure. Without robust fibre connections, these data centres cannot deliver the performance that AI applications depend on.
The connectivity challenge
The scale of the problem is clear. A recent study revealed that 82% of UK data centre operators have delayed site builds or expansions due to fibre shortages, as well as 89% of local authorities report infrastructure projects held back by fibre gaps. These delays don’t just slow progress, they threaten the UK’s ability to compete in the global AI economy.
For years, investment has focused on last-mile fibre to homes and businesses, while the core backbone networks that connect data centres nationwide have lagged behind. These long-haul fibre routes form the transport layer of the UK’s digital infrastructure. Without sufficient capacity and reach, inter-data-centre traffic cannot flow efficiently, AI training workloads suffer from latency and bandwidth bottlenecks, and large-scale compute investments fail to deliver their intended performance.
The UK has the ambition and demand to lead in AI. But unless we close the backbone fibre gaps, we risk missing out on one of the most significant economic opportunities of our generation.
Every stalled project means lost time, higher costs, and missed opportunities for hyperscale investment. Without resilient backbone fibre, businesses face increased latency, reduced performance, and a growing risk of falling behind in the global race for AI leadership.
Fujikura’s role in building the future
We enable operators to scale quickly with solutions designed for the growing demands of long-haul and metro networks. Our Wrapping Tube Cable™ (WTC) with SpiderWeb Ribbon® (SWR) provides a compact, high-density design that simplifies installation and reduces deployment time. Paired with the 90R mass fusion splicer, operators can splice and upgrade networks at speed—critical when every second counts.
Our technology delivers the high-capacity, low-latency connectivity needed to keep data flowing, helping telcos provide the performance that AI demands. By reducing labour requirements and accelerating rollout, we help operators overcome the fibre limitations and future-proof their networks for the AI era.
The bottom line
AI is transforming the way we live and work, but its success depends on the strength of the networks that power it. The UK’s ambition to lead in AI hinges on addressing the connectivity challenge head-on. Ageing fibre routes, delayed infrastructure projects, and the relocation of data centres all point to one truth: long-haul backbone fibre is essential.
Investing in high-capacity, low-latency networks isn’t just about keeping pace with technology; it’s about securing the UK’s position in the global AI race. Every kilometre of fibre laid strengthens the foundation for innovation, competitiveness, and sustainability.
We are committed to enabling this transformation. Our fibre solutions and rapid-deployment technologies enable operators to build high-capacity, low-latency networks engineered to support future traffic demands. Because no matter how powerful AI becomes, its performance ultimately depends on the underlying network infrastructure.
Explore how we enable hyperscale data centers to scale faster with our SWR technology and market leading mass fusion splicing.
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