The Infrastructure Underneath the Internet

The digital economy may feel weightless, but it depends on thousands of kilometres of fibre-optic cable, landing stations and network infrastructure. As cloud computing, AI and geopolitical tensions grow, the physical foundations of the internet are becoming increasingly valuable.

ET&A Research · 12 August 2026

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The Infrastructure Underneath the Internet

When we think about the internet, we tend to think about wireless technology. Smartphones connect through 5G. Laptops connect through Wi-Fi. Data sits in the cloud. Streaming platforms deliver films almost instantly, while messages can travel from London to New York in fractions of a second.

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