It’s a sun-kissed 26C in Slough, one of London’s more famous satellite towns, and Europe’s largest data centre hub. Monolithic structures, each one purring with noise, rise imposingly over terraced housing and corner shops. They are tall, grey buildings, warehouse-like and almost grand, encircled by electric fencing and security guards. As of 2026, there are 40 in and around Slough Trading Estate. More are on the way. On a global scale, the Berkshire town is second only to Ashburn, Virginia, as a data centre hub.
Slough’s facilities are used for everything from cloud computing to financial transactions and boring old corporate IT to generative AI. “Are they pumping out helpful information, or nude photos of kids?” asks one resident, who asks to remain anonymous.
