In a significant advancement for South Africa’s digital and AI capabilities, internet service provider Touchnet, in partnership with global cloud provider Zadara, has launched a sovereign AI cloud infrastructure at Digital Parks Africa’s carrier-neutral, Uptime Tier III Design Certified Data Centre in Samrand, Gauteng.
This deployment offers local businesses secure, high-performance access to GPU-powered cloud solutions optimized for AI workloads. By enabling enterprises to run advanced AI applications locally, the infrastructure ensures full data sovereignty—a critical factor for sectors bound by strict compliance and data protection laws. Hosting the solution within South Africa reduces latency, enabling real-time processing for machine learning, big data analytics, and generative AI use cases.
The initiative diminishes dependence on offshore cloud providers and promotes local innovation through scalable, cost-effective AI infrastructure access. Digital Parks Africa’s Samrand facility is recognized for robust security and energy efficiency, making it an ideal location for sovereign cloud services.
Touchnet and Zadara anticipate driving AI adoption across key industries including finance, healthcare, manufacturing, and education. Touchnet, an expert in Zadara’s sovereign AI edge cloud solutions, has deployed similar infrastructure across Africa. Zadara’s cloud solutions are globally established, with over 500 clouds and 250 partners spanning 24 countries.
