Amidst the ongoing escalation of tensions in the Middle East, Iran has expanded its strikes against US tech giants.
According to multiple domestic and international sources, including CCTV, Iran recently launched an attack on Amazon's cloud computing data center in Bahrain. This marks a second strike following the initial military action against hyperscale cloud infrastructure in early March, raising market concerns about the security of tech supply chains and digital infrastructure.
Consequently, global market risk aversion has significantly increased. The technology sector, particularly assets related to cloud computing, data centers, and AI infrastructure, has experienced heightened volatility, with some funds shifting towards safe-haven assets like energy and gold. Amazon's stock initially fell by 2.7% in early trading on Thursday.
On a deeper level, the attack on Amazon's data centers could alter the market's valuation framework for tech giants, shifting them from &#34;high-growth assets&#34; to complex assets that must also account for a &#34;geopolitical risk discount.&#34; As data centers begin to be targeted like oil fields and power plants, the operating logic of the global tech industry is being redefined.
<h2>Iran Confirms Strike on Amazon Data Center Thursday, Citing Espionage Links</h2>
According to CCTV News, on Thursday, April 2nd, local time, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran announced the commencement of the third phase of its &#34;True Promise-4&#34; 90th round of military operations. The statement indicated that Iran had launched actions against multiple targets, including strikes on seven US and Israeli air bases. Furthermore, in this phase, an attack was carried out on the Amazon cloud computing center in Bahrain, which the statement claimed was linked to espionage activities.
Some overseas media outlets reported on Thursday that Iran publicly stated the strike on Amazon's data center was retaliation for actions against Iran, directly targeting US tech infrastructure.
British media, citing informed sources, reported that the data center was &#34;damaged&#34; in the attack, with local fire departments involved in firefighting. Multiple media outlets reported that Iran used drones for the attack, impacting some critical cloud infrastructure.
According to reports, some services of Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon's cloud computing business, experienced increased error rates and reduced availability, with enterprises advised to migrate workloads to other regions.
It is noteworthy that this is not an isolated incident. As early as March, data centers of Amazon in the Gulf region had already been attacked multiple times.
Reports from early March indicated that regional Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure, invested in by US tech companies to the tune of billions of dollars in the Middle East, had become targets in Iran's military actions for the first time.
Reports pointed out that an Amazon facility in Bahrain was damaged due to an attack that occurred nearby on March 1st, and two other data centers in the UAE also suffered &#34;direct drone strikes.&#34; Amazon Web Services' health status page indicated that the affected facilities were still offline.
<h2>Iran Warned Tuesday of Strikes on 18 US Companies, Including Tech Giants, Escalating Conflict into the Tech Sector</h2>
This incident occurred against the backdrop of Iran's escalating retaliatory actions against the US and Israel.
According to Xinhua News Agency and other media outlets, Iran explicitly warned on Tuesday, March 31st, that it would expand its strike targets to include 18 US tech giants, encompassing cloud computing, chips, and AI, along with their overseas infrastructure, officially adding tech companies to its military target list.
Considering the current situation, several key trends can be observed:
<ul>
<li>&#34;De-neutralization&#34; of Tech Companies</li>
</ul>
Cloud services, previously considered commercial infrastructure, are now identified as potentially serving military and intelligence purposes, thus becoming legitimate targets.
<ul>
<li>AI Infrastructure as Strategic Assets</li>
</ul>
Middle Eastern countries are investing tens of billions of dollars in developing AI and data center industries. The recent attack could create a &#34;chilling effect&#34; on related investments.
<ul>
<li>Conflict Spills into the Digital Economy System</li>
</ul>
The scope of attacks has expanded from ports and oil and gas to data centers, signifying that the impact of war on global supply chains is extending from the &#34;physical world&#34; to the &#34;digital world.&#34;
<h2>From Oil and Gas to Computing Power: Data Centers Become &#34;Hard Targets&#34;</h2>
Analysts believe the attack on Amazon's data centers signifies a major shift in war objectives, moving from traditional energy facilities to digital infrastructure.
On one hand, the importance of data centers has fundamentally changed:
<ul>
<li>Cloud computing and AI infrastructure are considered the &#34;nerve centers of national operations.&#34;</li>
<li>They are highly dependent on electricity, cooling, and networks, and damage to critical nodes can trigger chain reactions.</li>
</ul>
On the other hand, the barrier to attack is not necessarily higher:
<ul>
<li>It does not require completely destroying buildings; disrupting power or network supply can cause prolonged paralysis.</li>
<li>The concentrated deployment of large cloud facilities makes them more susceptible to becoming high-value targets.</li>
</ul>
This explains why Amazon's AWS became the primary target – it has a significant number of self-built data centers in the Middle East, making its targets more concentrated.

At 9 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, Trump delivered a national address, claiming a "rapid and decisive victory" in the US military's war against Iran and stating that core strategic objectives were nearing completion. He emphasized that Iran would never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons and called the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities a "huge success." Regarding the Strait of Hormuz, Trump encouraged countries to "take responsibility for themselves" without providing a clear timetable for its reopening. Escalating tensions in the Middle East have put markets on edge, and the US military may intensify its strikes in the coming weeks. Will the US-Iran conflict end quickly as Trump hopes? How will the energy market evolve?

At 9 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, Trump delivered a national address, claiming a "rapid and decisive victory" in the US military's war against Iran and stating that core strategic objectives were nearing completion. He emphasized that Iran would never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons and called the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities a "huge success." Regarding the Strait of Hormuz, Trump encouraged countries to "take responsibility for themselves" without providing a clear timetable for its reopening. Escalating tensions in the Middle East have put markets on edge, and the US military may intensify its strikes in the coming weeks. Will the US-Iran conflict end quickly as Trump hopes? How will the energy market evolve?

Trump's tough stance: Is the war with Iran nearing its end?

Iran on Thursday claimed to have struck Amazon's cloud computing center in Bahrain during its 90th round of military operations, stating the facility was linked to espionage activities. In early March, Amazon had already reported that its data centers in the Gulf region, including Bahrain, were attacked. On Tuesday, Iran warned that it would strike 18 US companies, including several tech giants, if its senior commanders were assassinated

Tech Infrastructure Becomes a "New Battlefield" as Iran Strikes Amazon's Middle East Data Centers Again