What would an AI Peering Exchange look like?

At the Global Peering Forum 2026 in Panama City, Matt Griswold joined a panel asking "Is an AI Peering Exchange Possible?"

Josh Snowhorn of Quantum Loophole moderated the discussion, with Thomas King of DE-CIX, Richard Petrie of LINX, Jeff Budney of Verizon and Matt "Grizz" Griswold of Open Pipes taking part.

This isn't a recap of their discussion or an account of the panellists' views. The title itself got me thinking: what do we actually mean by an AI Peering Exchange?

Chicago Open Pipes

Chicago's first independent, data center-neutral, nonprofit Internet exchange. mushroom Midwest values, local routing.

Chicago Open Pipes is neutral, nonprofit interconnection for the Midwest — governed by the community on behalf of the region it serves.

Carrier- and data center-neutral by design: no commercial parent, no preferred partners, no outside shareholders. The exchange is a commons.

Lower costs, better performance, and stronger regional infrastructure — interconnection done right.

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Helping Communities Own Their Infrastructure

Nonprofit IX Umbrella

We give communities the nonprofit backbone to launch self-governed Internet exchanges — no foreign parent company, no outside shareholders, just local networks building local infrastructure.

Open Source Advocacy

We champion the open source tools networks depend on — routing, monitoring, and automation built in the open, not behind a licensing wall.

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We work with the global Internet community to advance open standards and bring best practices to every region we serve.

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Want to keep your region's interconnection local? Open Pipes provides the nonprofit structure, governance support, and operational capacity to make it possible.

Communities launch and steward their own regional Internet exchanges under our umbrella — independent of any commercial parent, on behalf of the public.

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Knowledge is Power

The Beginner's Guide to Interconnection

The Internet isn't one big network, it's thousands, all exchanging data every second. This page unpacks the hidden infrastructure behind that magic, from Internet Exchanges and peering to cloud on-ramps, showing how networks connect, collaborate, and keep the world online.

Traffic Engineering Best Practices

Traffic engineering is how networks plan and control data flow to keep things fast, smooth, and reliable. This page shows the tools and tactics operators use to cut latency, prevent congestion, and make every packet count.

BGP Essentials - A Beginner's Guide

BGP is the Internet's routing backbone, the protocol that tells data how to move across thousands of networks. This page breaks down how it works, why it matters, and the best practices that keep the global Internet running smoothly

Network Automation

Network automation uses code, APIs, and workflows to manage networks at scale, faster, safer, and without human error. This page explores the tools and practices that turn complex infrastructure into reliable, self-running systems.

Developing a Peering Strategy

A peering strategy is how networks choose who to connect with, where, and why, shaping cost, performance, and market reach. This page shows how smart interconnection decisions turn traffic flows into business advantages.

Partnership Building: Developing Relationships

Strong partnerships power the Internet, connecting networks to carriers, content networks, and data hubs that expand reach and boost performance. This page explores how strategic relationships turn technical connectivity into lasting business success.

Positioning Your IX or Network

Positioning is how you tell the story of your IX or network, what sets you apart and why others should connect with you. This page shows how to craft a compelling value proposition that turns technical capability into trust, relevance, and growth.

Community Engagement

Community engagement is how networks turn connections into trusted relationships, showing up, contributing, and collaborating to shape the Internet's future. This page explores how active participation builds credibility, visibility, and long-term opportunity.

Telling Your Story

Storytelling turns powerful infrastructure into a compelling reason to connect, showing both engineers and executives the real-world impact behind the technology. This page explains how to communicate value clearly, with data, outcomes, and human stories that resonate.

Launching a Nonprofit IX

A nonprofit IX is more than infrastructure, it's a community asset built on trust, neutrality, and shared benefit. This page guides you through structuring your organization, defining a growth roadmap, and building an exchange that serves the Internet, not shareholders.

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