Vertiv hosts high stakes roadshow for Nigeria’s AI-ready digital infrastructure future

As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to reshape the global business landscape, one of the world’s leading digital infrastructure companies is helping to ensure Africa isn’t left behind. On Thursday, June 26, 2025, Vertiv will bring its AI Solutions Innovation Roadshow to Lagos, Nigeria, as part of its global push to engage with enterprises and consultants navigating the demands of high-performance computing (HPC) and AI.

The event, set to take place in Victoria Island, Lagos, will gather thought leaders, engineers, and policy experts to explore how West African businesses can build infrastructure that’s ready for the AI era. The focus will be on understanding the power, cooling, and scalability needs of AI and HPC systems, and how to implement them in ways that are both efficient and future-proof.

“This event series marks our dedication to actively support the data centre and AI market across Africa,” said Wojtek Piorko, Managing Director for Africa at Vertiv. “With the incremental influence of AI and HPC on our industry, we understand the critical need to support our customers and partners with insights and technology that drive their success.”

While the sessions will dive into technical terrain — such as liquid cooling innovations and data centre optimisation — the event also underscores a much larger story about Africa’s digital infrastructure ambitions.

This is where Vertiv’s global experience becomes relevant. Headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, USA, Vertiv is a leading provider of critical infrastructure solutions for data centres, communication networks, and industrial environments. With operations in over 130 countries, including a growing presence in Africa, the company combines hardware, software, analytics, and services to help businesses keep their IT systems running 24/7.

Whether it’s power systems that prevent outages or cooling technologies designed for high-density computing, Vertiv plays a behind-the-scenes but vital role in ensuring digital applications — from banking apps to cloud platforms — operate seamlessly. Its work spans sectors like cloud computing, telecommunications, finance, and e-commerce, many of which are now being transformed by AI.

Returning to the Lagos roadshow, the day’s agenda will feature presentations from senior Vertiv experts including Jon Abbott, Technologies Director for Colocation and Hyperscale in EMEA; Luther Ogbaji, a liquid cooling specialist; Sofiat Ojurongbe, Regional Account Manager; and Okechi Osuagwu, Key Account Sales Manager. These sessions will offer a deep dive into the innovations making AI infrastructure more sustainable and cost-efficient — a particularly important conversation in a region grappling with rising energy costs and regulatory uncertainties.

A key highlight of the event will be a panel discussion titled “Building for Tomorrow: Preparing West Africa’s Infrastructure for AI at Scale.” Participants such as Wole Abu, Managing Director for West Africa at Equinix, and Gerald Madondo, Country Director at Turner & Townsend, will debate how governments and the private sector can work together to meet AI’s rising demands, and what policies are needed to accelerate infrastructure development.

Beyond the technical discussions, the roadshow also provides a crucial networking platform for Nigeria’s fast-growing community of tech founders, engineers, infrastructure consultants, and government stakeholders. With Lagos rapidly positioning itself as a hub for digital services and cloud infrastructure, this event is both timely and necessary.