Think from KERA Forget the cloud, the internet runs on wires
Oct 14, 2025
Samanth Subramanian, an author and journalist known for his work on undersea data cables, dives into the fascinating world of the internet's backbone. He discusses the fragile network of submarine cables that carry 95% of international data, highlighting the Tonga outage caused by a volcanic eruption. Subramanian explains the construction of these cables, their ownership by tech giants, and the legal gaps surrounding them. He also raises important questions about internet access as a fundamental right and the vulnerabilities of our digital connections.
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Prioritize Redundant Cable Routes
- Build redundancy: wealthier economies route multiple cables from different directions to prevent total outages.
- Underserved regions often lack redundancy and remain uniquely vulnerable to single-cable failures.
Cable Landings Look Deceptively Simple
- When a cable lands it is pulled ashore on a beach into a manhole and threaded through ducts to a nearby data center.
- The landing site looks simple: often just a boat, divers, and a manhole leading inland to servers.
Breaks Usually Happen Close To Shore
- Most cable breaks are near shore, usually from ship anchors or fishing trawlers snagging them.
- Deep-sea breaks occur but tend to result from geological events like quakes or volcanic activity.
