The Physical Stack: Where the Bottlenecks Are

Asia-Pacific's AI infrastructure buildout has moved from ambition to large-scale execution. By end-2025, the region's total development pipeline reached a record 19.4 GW — with 13.8 GW operational, 3.7 GW under construction, and 15.7 GW in planning (Cushman & Wakefield, March 2026). Southeast Asia alone accounts for 31% of capacity currently under construction, with a significant delivery cycle expected through 2026. But capital is no longer the binding constraint — the physical supply chain is. Power interconnection timelines of 18–36 months, transmission grid limits in key markets like Singapore, and a global scramble for liquid cooling hardware are reshaping where and how fast AI data centres can be built.

This note maps the six critical supply chain nodes that determine project timelines across APAC. Each node is classified by its current constraint status — from binding bottleneck to commoditising — to help investors and operators identify where risk and opportunity sit in the infrastructure stack.