Issue Neuromorphic, optical and quantum processors would each require different data centre designs

Summary

Deloitte presents today's AI infrastructure shift as the start of a longer computational revolution. Over the next five to 20 years, it expects data centres to keep evolving to host increasingly specialised tools for particular applications. Custom silicon is moving beyond general-purpose chips toward processors built for specific AI tasks, including neuromorphic computing for pattern recognition and optical computing for more energy-efficient data processing. Once quantum computing reaches scale, it is likely to change data centre design fundamentally, since quantum systems need cooling, form factors and extreme noise and temperature controls very different from current AI hardware. Future orchestration layers may therefore need to manage quantum processing units, neuromorphic chips and optical arrays alongside virtual machines and containers. The report treats these as design requirements to anticipate rather than immediate deployments.