Santiago pokes holes in data centre hype, asks: Who really benefits?

THERE’S growing excitement around Malaysia’s data centre boom, but not everyone is buying the narrative wholesale.

Former Klang MP Charles Santiago has come out swinging, questioning whether the country is chasing big numbers without fully understanding what it stands to gain — or lose.

In a pointed series of remarks, he targeted Putrajaya’s policy direction, zeroing in on everything from energy planning to job creation and the much-hyped AI spillover effect.

First up: nuclear energy. While there’s talk of Malaysia exploring nuclear options, Santiago noted that countries often cited as examples are already rolling out more immediate solutions — solar, battery storage and grid upgrades.

Nuclear, he said, is a long game that could take up to 15 years.

The obvious question then: what’s the plan right now?

Because data centres aren’t waiting.

They need power and water today. And that’s where things get uncomfortable.

Parts of Malaysia are already dealing with water stress during drought and El Niño cycles.

Santiago questioned how the government plans to juggle rising industrial demand without squeezing households in the process.

Then comes the jobs argument — one of the biggest selling points of data centre investments.

Santiago isn’t dismissing it outright. Yes, there are economic spin-offs.

But if you follow the value chain closely, he argued, the bulk of activity happens during the early phases — land deals, construction, infrastructure build-outs.

“Once the data centres are up and running, the number of long-term, high-quality jobs may not be as significant as advertised,” he said.

And even beyond jobs, there’s a bigger issue: who actually captures the value?

High-value segments like cloud services, AI, software and intellectual property are still largely controlled by global tech giants.

That raises a hard truth — Malaysia may be hosting the infrastructure, but not necessarily reaping the biggest rewards.

The AI argument doesn’t escape scrutiny either.

“We’re told data centres will unlock an AI ecosystem. But which local industries are currently being held back by a lack of computing power?”

“Are we solving real problems, or just building first and figuring it out later?” the DAP man asked.

He also pushed back on comparisons with manufacturing — a sector known for driving supply chains and employment at scale.

Data centres, by contrast, are highly automated. Many “indirect jobs” may simply mean existing contractors taking on extra work, not a wave of new hiring.

Still, it’s not all criticism.

Santiago pointed to renewable energy as the most credible upside.

Data centres could create strong, bankable demand for solar, energy storage and grid upgrades — areas where job creation is more tangible and long-term.

Miss that opportunity, he warned, and Malaysia risks carrying the costs without capturing the full benefits.

At its core, Santiago’s message is simple: enough with the headline figures.

The real questions are harder — and more important.

Who benefits? How many lasting jobs are created? What actual problems are being solved?

And how much of the value stays in Malaysia?

Until those are answered, the data centre boom may be more hype than substance. – June 10, 2026