Inside the intense world of NextDC boss Craig Scroggie, his AI obsession and the battle to power Australia’s digital future
Australian Financial Review
ENRICHED
Details
- Date Published
- 31 July 2026
- Priority Score
- 2
- Australian
- Yes
- Created
- 31 July 2026, 12:00 am
Description
Craig Scroggie, chief executive of NextDC, reckons you can never have enough data centres. Or protein.
Summary
This profile explores the aggressive adoption of AI agents and large language models by the CEO of Australia's largest data centre operator, highlighting a trend toward extreme digital optimization in corporate leadership. While focusing on the business expansion and personal habits of Craig Scroggie, it touches on the rapid deployment of 'digital twin' AI clones within Australian enterprise environments. The piece illustrates the high-speed infrastructure build-out required to support frontier AI models, though it lacks deep engagement with the resulting catastrophic risks or safety governance frameworks. Its primary relevance lies in documenting the real-world Australian corporate vanguard's reliance on increasingly autonomous AI tools for executive decision-making.
Body
Amelia McGuireBusiness reporterJul 31, 2026 – 5.00amIt’s taken seven months and 15 requests but Craig Scroggie has finally agreed to participate for this profile. To warm up before one of our interviews, he replies over email to a list of questions. Every response is detailed, lengthy and reads as if it’s written by a chatbot.Scroggie leads Australia’s largest public data centre business, NextDC, and is probably the most AI-pilled chief executive of any company on the Australian Securities Exchange. He’s built 40 AI agents, including personas for each member of his company’s leadership team; he’ll go to the bots first with a query, especially if it’s in the middle of the night. How do his executives feel about their boss building their digital twin? Scroggie says he’s encouraged them to build their own version of him. He integrates large language models into every aspect of his life in an endless pursuit for optimisation. Including, it would appear, crafting answers to The Australian Financial Review Magazine’s initial questions for this profile.Loading...SaveLog in or Subscribe to save articleShareCopy linkCopiedEmailLinkedInTwitterFacebookCopy linkCopiedShare via...Gift this articleSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? LoginLicense articleRead MoreAFR MagazineData centresInnovationAIDietEnterprise ITAmelia McGuireBusiness reporterAmelia McGuire was a technology reporter at The Australian Financial Review. Connect with Amelia on Twitter.Fetching latest articles