Google plans to establish a military AI data center on Christmas Island for reconnaissance and monitoring.

Reuters has revealed documents showing that Google plans to build a large artificial intelligence data center on Christmas Island in remote territory of Australia, for dual commercial and military purposes. The project stems from a cloud computing cooperation agreement signed by Google and the Australian Department of Defense in July 2025, and is considered an important layout for deepening military technology cooperation between Australia and the United States. Christmas Island is located in the Indian Ocean, about 220 miles from Indonesia, with an area of approximately 52 square miles. Military experts point out that the data center could become a key node for future "AI-enabled command and control," supporting unmanned reconnaissance, target acquisition, and mission decision-making. Former U.S. Navy strategist and current Hudson Institute researcher Brian Clark said, "Future warfare will rely on AI systems for cross-platform collaboration, and this center is the infrastructure to achieve that capability." Retired Australian Navy Rear Admiral Peter Levy said the island's geographical location could monitor important waterways such as the Sunda, Lombok, and Malacca Straits. Google has applied for environmental approval and plans to lay underwater cables connecting Christmas Island to Darwin, to be executed by the exclusive subcontractor for the U.S. military, SubCom, which has previously built communication lines for the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean. Steve Pareda, chairman of the Christmas Island Local Council, said the community is currently evaluating the impact of the project, with only about 1,600 residents on the island, with a single economic structure and limited communication. He noted, "Residents support the project on the condition that it brings jobs, improves infrastructure, and creates tangible economic value for the community." The data center project continues a three-year military cloud cooperation between Australia and Google, similar to the 400 million contract signed by the UK Ministry of Defence and Google Cloud in September 2025, to strengthen intelligence sharing between the UK and the US. Currently, neither Google nor the Australian Department of Defense has commented publicly on the project.