Australia’s next wave of innovation will depend on how clearly policy separates generic data centres from high‑performance computing (HPC). Bundling them into one “digital infrastructure” bucket directs capital to cloud‑style capacity while underinvesting in leadership‑class HPC needed for frontier AI, climate modelling, defence and advanced industry. The piece argues for explicit “AI‑ready HPC” and “AI‑capable cloud” tracks in national strategy, funding and governance.