Large global investors have played a major role in the AI boom, providing funding for the construction of data centers and network infrastructure.

Today we look at data centers through the perspective of investors, How do large private investors think about data centers as an asset class? What trends do they consider in their investment strategies? Which markets are the most attractive? And how do they think about opportunity and risk in a fast-moving market?

Rich Miller's guest today is Michael Hochanadel, the Managing Director and Head of Digital Assets at Harrison Street. Michael has been an investor in the sector for 20 years, and shares his insights about how investors assess different types of properties and business models, and what the next phase of AI-powered growth might look like.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 - The Investor Perspective on the Data Center Sector

01:37 - Introduction to Michael and his career

03:25 - Background on Harrison Street

07:15 - The Themes Guiding Harrison Street’s Data Center Strategy

12:30 - Harrison Street’s digital infrastructure investments - PowerHouse, 1547, Oppidan and Summit IG

15:40 - How network architecture creates investment opportunities

17:45 - The state of the Enterprise data center market. What’s next?

21:30 - AI and Infrastructure: How will the rise of inference shape th enetwork?

27:00 - AI use cases could be “limitless.” Michael shares some early winners.

30:15 - Assessing investment risk in a rapidly evolving AI landscape

At Data Center Richness we demystify technology and explain why data centers matter, and what comes next for the Internet, cloud computing and AI. Host Rich Miller is a journalist and analyst who has been covering the data center sector for 25 years. Subscribe to our channel for more insights:

On YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@DataCenterRichness?sub_confirmation=1

On the Web:
Data Center Richness https://datacenterpodcast.com/

LINKS FROM THIS SHOW:

Michael Hochanadel Bio
https://harrisonst.com/people/michael-hochanadel/

Michael on LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-hochanadel-767380/

Harrison Street
https://harrisonst.com/

RELATED VIDEO:

What's Next for Data Center Real Estate?
https://youtu.be/H2FFJfm5wug?si=RI-9sGUGGbzmE4qh

How Will Data Centers Be Different in 2030
https://youtu.be/IUO8fUWNoX8?si=QjhHEBlvx3fMR0Z

Why Data Centers Matter in the Age of AI
https://youtu.be/9GJSENgbcmk?si=lkeyM8AiseP1v99t

DISCLAIMER: The information provided in this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only, and does not constitute investment advice or any other professional advice. Please consult with a professional for specific advice tailored to your situation.

Supplemental music via Epidemic Sound https://share.epidemicsound.com/60o8qx

Chris Crosby has deep insights on essential the role of data centers in an AI-powered future. Crosby is the CEO of Compass Datacenters, which builds some of the world’s largest data center campuses.

In this week's Data Center Richness episode, host Rich Miller talks with Crosby about how Compass has embraced new approaches to power and the supply chain, as well as sustainable construction and backup power. Crosby also shares about Compass' adoption of HVO (hydrogenated vegetable oil), a lower-emissions diesel fuel, and the company's current project to convert the former Sears Headquarters near Chicago into a massive data center campus.

But for Crosby, the success at Compass all comes down to company culture and building great teams.

Highlights:

00:00 - Overview from host Rich Miller

02:00 - The role of digital infrastructure in an AI-powered world

03:30 - Solving power constraints impacting AI growth

07:45 - Load flexibility as a Pathway to Power

11:15 - The role of capital in fixing the grid

15:00 - How to address utility power queues

17:45 - How do data centers make flexibility work?

20:25 - Rethinking the data center supply chain

23:15 - The power of company culture in building great teams

27:45 - Bringing new talent into the data center industry

30:05 - How Compass thinks about sustainability

32:15 - Leading the way on adoption of HVO (low-emission generator fuel)

34:30 - Converting the Sears HQ campus into a huge data center

37:00 - The role of data center retrofits and adaptive reuse

38:25 - Data centers and community relations

41:00 - Data centers and the opportunity ahead

At Data Center Richness we demystify technology and explain why data centers matter, and what comes next for the Internet, cloud computing and AI. Host Rich Miller is a journalist and analyst who has been covering the data center sector for 25 years.

Subscribe to our channel for more insights:

On the Web: Data Center Richness
https://datacenterpodcast.com/

LINKS FROM THIS SHOW:

Compass Datacenters
https://www.compassdatacenters.com/

Compass Culture: Core Convictions
https://www.compassdatacenters.com/about/

Sears HQ to Become a Data Center https://www.datacenterfrontier.com/hyperscale/article/55089460/suburban-chicago-welcomes-compass-datacenters-major-hyperscale-development-on-legacy-sears-hq-site

Chris Crosby on LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-crosby-3542b71/

RELATED VIDEO:

Flexibility: The Key to Unlocking More Data Center Power
https://youtu.be/D6-1QxRRxoA?si=0Zf8leFTQJ28ZlTg

How Will Data Centers Be Different in 2030
https://youtu.be/IUO8fUWNoX8?si=QjhHEBlvx3fMR0Z-

Verrus is Rethinking the Data Center
https://youtu.be/x9OoLh8UEoc?si=mINiJlqSCMmX1ejJ

Supplemental music via Epidemic Sound https://share.epidemicsound.com/60o8qx

Verrus is a new data center company that is seeking to build the data center of the future. It is rethinking key aspects of how data centers are built, and how they interact with the power grid.

On this episode of Data Center Richness, host Rich Miller speaks with the leadership team at Verrus, an all-star team of data center pioneers who are rethinking the data center for 2025 and beyond. That includes new approaches to some of the huge challenges the industry faces around power and design.

Verrus is a company to watch in the next few years. It plans to use software, AI, and deep wells of engineering experience to improve how data centers interact with compute workloads and the power grid. It plans to create grid-interactive data centers that use energy storage and software to work more effectively with utilities, along with data center designs that optimize every watt at every point of the power chain.

Verrus is backed by Alphabet spinoff Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners, and much of the Verrus leadership team helped create Google’s hyperscale data centers. That includes my guests today, Nelson Abramson and Anand Ramesh, the CEO and CTO of Verrus, who will share about their experience at Google. All told, the Verrus team has deployed 13 gigawatts of data center capacity.

If you’re wondering what the future of data centers will look like, I think you’’ll enjoy today’s conversation. Here’s an overview:

00:00 - Intro: Rethinking the Data Center

02:10 -Who is Verrus? Meet Nelson Abramson and Anand Ramesh

04:45 - How Verrus plans to be different

07:20 - “Fundamentally re-evaluating” data center development

09:15 - Data centers as an anergy asset

12:11 - The role of energy storage in Verrus’ ambitions

15:25 - Design innovation at Verrus

17:00 - The utility relationship, and opportunities in load flexibility

22:00 - New structures and tools that can redefine utility relationships

28:30 - Power design, energy optimization and the Negawatt

44:10 - Data centers are fundamentally changing

At Data Center Richness we demystify technology and explain why data centers matter, and what comes next for the Internet, cloud computing and AI. Host Rich Miller is a journalist and analyst who has been covering the data center sector for 25 years.

Subscribe to our channel for more insights!

On the Web: Data Center Richness https://datacenterpodcast.com/

LINKS FROM THIS SHOW:

Verrus https://verrusdata.com/

Technical Report w NREL: The Data Center as a Flexible Grid Asset https://verrusdata.com/news/verrus-nrel

Verrus on LinkedIN https://www.linkedin.com/company/verrus/

RELATED VIDEO:

Flexibility: The Key to Unlocking More Data Center Power https://youtu.be/D6-1QxRRxoA?si=0Zf8leFTQJ28ZlTg

How Will Data Centers Be Different in 2030 https://youtu.be/IUO8fUWNoX8?si=QjhHEBlvx3fMR0Z-

Data Centers, AI and the Future of Power https://youtu.be/EYo2YK7L5q0?si=0ae-RwdbBFQnRwJ8

Supplemental music via Epidemic Sound https://share.epidemicsound.com/60o8qx