Zachary Smith – The Splinternet: Ecosystems, Sovereignty, and the Internet in the Age of AI

Zachary Smith is CEO of Datum, where he builds open, interconnected infrastructure for the next generation of cloud and AI platforms. He has spent more than two decades building internet infrastructure and the software behind it. Before Datum, he co-founded Packet, later acquired by Equinix, and was an early leader at Voxel.net, one of the first Linux hosting companies.

Zachary also serves on the board of directors of Nexcess, Wasabi Technologies, 1NCE, and the Danish 1st Division soccer club Akademisk Boldklub.

At BalticNOG 2026, Zachary will bring this perspective to the stage with his talk, “The Splinternet: Ecosystems, Sovereignty, and the Internet in the Age of AI.”

A Borderless Internet Meets Sovereign Demands

AI platforms are reshaping global data flows, disrupting economies, and putting pressure on the workforce, all while challenging decades of assumptions about a neutral, open internet. Zachary’s talk sits at the center of a real tension: technology keeps getting more borderless, while governments and regions push harder for control over their own data.

His framing is blunt: the internet as we knew it is gone, and something else is taking its place.

What Keeps Infrastructure Resilient as the Ground Shifts

As commercial systems, governments, and regulatory frameworks all move around it, Zachary will look at what still holds infrastructure together. He will focus on open-source communities and interoperability driven by shared standards rather than any single company or country, and why that kind of collaboration matters more, not less, as the pressure for sovereign control grows.

What the Splinternet Could Look Like

Zachary will map out what a more fragmented internet could and should look like. He’ll get specific about what this shift means in practice for networks, service providers, builders, and technology consumers of every size, from large carriers to individual developers.

Why You Shouldn’t Miss This Talk

The tension between open infrastructure and sovereign control isn’t going away. Zachary brings two decades of building internet infrastructure to a question every operator will eventually face: how do you build and run networks in a world that’s pulling toward fragmentation instead of openness?

If you build, run, or depend on internet infrastructure, this talk gives you a clear-eyed look at where things are headed and what it means for your work.

📅 When: 23-24 September 2026

📍 Where: BalticNOG 2026, Riga, Latvia

🔗 Don’t miss BalticNOG! Register today: https://balticnog.org/tickets/