Data eXec

This week’s standout global investment/M&A news: ◾ Jeff Bezos steps in as co-CEO of Project Prometheus, a new AI venture already stacked with $6.2B to reinvent engineering and manufacturing at scale. ◾ Anthropic locks in a $30B compute commitment with Microsoft Azure, securing up to 1GW of extra capacity alongside a deepened partnership with Microsoft and Nvidia. ◾ GlobalFoundries acquires Advanced Micro Foundry (Singapore), positioning itself as the world’s largest silicon photonics maker, a major swing for AI data centre networks. ◾ Vertiv snaps up PurgeRite for $1B, doubling down on next-gen data centre cooling with a deal priced at ~10x expected 2026 EBITDA. HICL + TRIG propose a £5.3B merger, set to create the UK’s largest listed infrastructure investment company. ◾ Firmus Technologies’ valuation rockets to $6B, after a fresh $500M raise and unveiling its $73.3B Project Southgate - AI data centre expansion across Australia. ◾ Legence acquires Bowers for $475M, picking up $1.3B in existing data centre contracts in a high-impact strategic move. Another week, another wave of bold moves reshaping the data centre and AI infrastructure landscape🚀 If you think this sector is slowing down… you’re not paying attention. This is what momentum looks like. #datacenterinvestment #datacenternews

We’ve crunched the numbers from DataX Connect's 2025 Data Center Salary Survey - insights from over 1,500 data center professionals across the US and Europe - and the message is loud and clear: 40% of permanent employees are planning to leave in the next 12 months. Yes, even the ones who just got a raise or bonus. This report isn’t about numbers, it’s about what the numbers mean. If you’re a leader still thinking pay is the answer to retention, it’s time to wake up. The companies who keep their talent are the ones who invest in progression, purpose, and culture. The rest? They’re on borrowed time. We’ve pulled out what matters most for leadership teams who are serious about building the kind of place top talent wants to stay. Because loyalty isn’t bought, it’s built.

This year, the world will spend $580 billion on data centers, $40 billion more than it will spend on new oil supplies. That's according to research done by the International Energy Agency (IEA). "A tripling of the amount of electricity consumed by data centres by 2035 represents less than 10% of total global electricity demand growth, but it is highly concentrated geographically. More than 85% of new data centre capacity additions over the next ten years are expected in the United States, China and the European Union – and many are located near existing data centre clusters, putting additional strain on congested grids." https://lnkd.in/eBMFv9sM

Building leadership teams in the busiest sector in the world is no easy task.. That is why we only work with the coolest clients in the world. We are currently working with two investment funds about to launch new platforms. One out of London. One out of New York. Both serious players with serious capital. And an agile approach... The market moves fast, and so do they. Achievable strategies built on the foundation of industry expertise C-Level candidates required with a proven track record in Data Center platforms (this is essential). Be a key part of the founding team. The best of the best. You know who you are.. 📧 andy.davis@dataxconnect.com It's not slowing down.

Hanley Energy, an Irish data center energy management company, is being acquired by US power management firm Jabil for approximately $725 million (€631 million). “With Hanley’s deep technical know-how and comprehensive life cycle services, including design, consulting, deployment, commissioning, and field support services, we will be even better positioned to deliver secure, reliable, and energy-efficient power solutions to our global customers,” said Jabil chief technology officer Ed Bailey. https://lnkd.in/ekxpEKQQ

Data centre investment news this week: 🗞️ AWS will invest at least $5 billion in South Korea by 2031 to build new AI data centers 🗞️ Nvidia has said it would make a $1 billion equity investment in Finnish networking equipment maker Nokia 🗞️ Blackstone is set to partner with Humain, Saudi Arabia’s state-supported AI company, in a deal valued at US$3bn 🗞️  Sanmina Corporation announced the completion of its acquisition of ZT Systems’ data center infrastructure manufacturing business from AMD 🗞️  onsemi has completed acquisition of Vcore Power Technology from Aura Semiconductor #DataCenterInvestment

Investment news in data centres this week: ⚡ The Hitachi Group is acquiring synvert, a consulting firm in the data and AI space headquartered in Germany. ⚡ Oracle has taken on $18bn in debt ahead of an AI data center build-out. ⚡ Nvidia-backed AI startup Nscale has raised $1.1 Billion for data center rollout. ⚡ Robotics and data startup Alloy raises $4.5 million pre-seed funding round fronted by Blackbird. #DataCentreInvestment

£2bn into UK AI. A vote of confidence? Nvidia is investing £2bn into the UK’s AI startup ecosystem, and we think it's a huge signal of trust in the UK’s tech potential. This investment will back UK-based innovators like Synthesia, Revolut, Oxa, PolyAI, Latent Labs, and Basecamp Research – and includes £500m into data centre startup Nscale. What does this mean? More companies. More jobs. More innovation happening on UK soil. There’s opportunity here for the UK to lead in AI. If we stay ambitious, back our talent, and create the infrastructure to support real scale. #DataCentreInvestment

🚨 Major move in the UK data centre market BlackRock is investing $678m into a new venture with Digital Gravity Partners... and it’s not your typical hyperscaler play. Gravity Edge will focus on acquiring underutilised data centres with available power (5-20MW) - modernising them instead of building from scratch. What stands out? ➡️ They’re targeting real assets with potential, not shovel-ready developments ➡️ The focus is on exit liquidity - real estate and infra funds could be the future buyers ➡️ First investment: a data centre in West London (details under wraps) We’re seeing more investors shift their attention to brownfield opportunities, optimising what already exists in power-constrained markets. #DataCentreInvestment