Edge and telecom sites, and converted sites
Compute placed close to users in network and telecom sites, or in buildings converted from other uses.
Definition, not a sourced statistic
What it is
Edge compute runs in many small sites close to users, such as network points of presence and telecom exchanges, so responses travel a short distance. Converted sites are buildings or plots first used for something else, such as industrial plants or crypto mining, that are refitted to host compute because they already have power and space.
Who it suits
- Inference and applications where response time to users matters.
- Workloads that need compute in many places at once.
- Developers and operators looking at sites with power already in place.
Common contract shapes
- Edge instances or functions. Small amounts of compute in many locations, billed by time or call.
- Telecom hosting. Space and power in network operator buildings, on a contract.
- Lease of a converted site. A refitted building or campus leased like colocation or a powered shell.
Providers use their own names for these shapes, so compare what is promised, not what it is called. The contract shapes guide explains each one.
What to ask
- Egress and data transfer. Is traffic between edge sites and back to a central cloud charged?
- Service levels. Is uptime promised per site or across the network, and how do requests fail over?
- Data residency and access. Which countries do the edge locations sit in, and can you limit where requests run?
- Security certifications. Do certifications cover every edge location, or only the main sites?
- Export controls and sanctions. Are accelerators placed in every country of the network, and are any restricted there?
- Exit. For converted sites, what are the planning, environmental and power terms if the use changes again?
- For converted sites: is the power connection rated and permitted for data centre use, not only the old use?
The full list is on the printable buyer's checklist. For rules on chips and where they can go, see export controls and compute thresholds.
On this site
Entries listed here because their own summary or checked facts on this site fit this type. An entry can fit more than one type, and a provider missing here may still offer it. This is a list, not a ranking, and in name order. We link to providers for prices.
Providers
- Akamai Cloud (Linode): A distributed public cloud built into Akamai's edge network, with compute, storage, Kubernetes, serverless and GPU instances for AI inference.
- Cloudflare Workers AI: A serverless service that runs open-source machine learning models on GPUs across Cloudflare's network, with no servers to manage.
- Flux (RunOnFlux): A decentralised cloud made of user-operated nodes. It offers general app deployment, AI and edge services, with applications run as Docker containers.
- Gcore: A provider combining cloud, edge network, security and AI services. Its GPU cloud covers several NVIDIA GPU generations, with or without InfiniBand networking.
Gap This site does not yet list converted sites or telecom hosting offers.
Related
- Glossary: Training and inference, Behind the meter, Interconnection queue, Data residency.
- Guide: Can I build a data centre in X?
- Grid queues
- Data centre records
- Compare offer types
Other offer types: Hyperscale cloud instances · GPU clouds and bare metal · Marketplaces and aggregators · Decentralised and community networks · Regional and sovereign clouds · Managed inference and serverless GPU · Chip-maker and accelerator clouds · National and institutional HPC, and free or funded programmes · Colocation, wholesale, powered shell and build-to-suit · On-premises hardware, and leasing or financing it · Capacity brokers, reserved contracts, secondary and spot markets
Definitions and questions written in our own words, checked on 3 October 2026 and due for review by 3 January 2027. Sourced facts stay on the provider, programme and policy pages this page links to. This is general information to help you ask better questions. It is not legal, tax or procurement advice. For export controls, sanctions and contracts, check the primary rules and talk to a qualified adviser. Something wrong? Tell us.