Weekly Data Centre News - 15/05/2026
Weekly Update! Another week, another wave of announcements that would have sounded completely unbelievable just a couple of years ago. The scale of investment pouring into AI infrastructure continues to accelerate, with Moody’s forecasting hyperscaler capex could close in on $1tn annually by 2027 as the race for compute, power, and capacity intensifies.
This week we also saw continued momentum around new developments and financing activity. Blackstone launched its new AI infrastructure investment vehicle, further proof that institutional capital still sees enormous long-term opportunity in the sector. Meanwhile, operators across the US, Europe, and Asia continue to secure land and power at pace, with the industry increasingly focused on one thing: who can actually deliver capacity the fastest.
At the same time, the conversation around data centres is becoming more mainstream than ever. Alongside the investment headlines, we’re seeing growing debate around energy use, planning, and community impact, a sign that digital infrastructure is no longer operating in the background. Whether it’s AI factories, hyperscale campuses, or sovereign infrastructure strategies, data centres are now firmly front-page news.
Enjoying this newsletter?
You can support my work by becoming a paid subscriber.
Join our WhatsApp channel - Join here.
Interested in sponsorship? andy.davis@dataxconnect.com
Event Discounts
DataCloud Global Congress. 2-4 June, Cannes. Use code ANDYDAVIS15 to secure 15% off your pass. Register here.
Yotta: September 28-30, Las Vegas. Use code DCC20. Register here.
Reports
IDCA: Global Data Center Report (2026). Read here.
Airtrunk: Financing the Future: Building Asia Pacific’s Sustainable Digital Backbone. Read here.
Moody’s: Hyperscaler capex forecasts marked up by $85bn, to close in on $1trn by 2027. Read here.
Gallup: Americans Oppose AI Data Centers in Their Area. Read here.
Europe
EdgeConneX to Invest €3 Billion in Three New Data Centres in Italy by 2031. Read here.
Nscale Secures $790 Million in Financing to Support AI Infrastructure Buildout in Norway. Read here.
Argentum AI Signs $2.5 Billion European Data Center Deal with Cloud Gaming, Real Estate Firms. Read here.
Nebius reports first quarter 2026 financial results. Read here.
IREN Expands AI Cloud Platform to Europe with Acquisition of Nostrum Group. Read here.
Malaga attracts major 1.2-billion-euro data centre set to start construction in 2027. Read here.
Plans announced for municipal data center in Reșița, Romania. Read here.
Kao Data Acquires New Industrial Site in Park Royal, West London. Read here.
Data centre designed to re-use heat to warm local homes given green light in Bradford. Read here.
Digital Realty breaks ground on latest data center in Paris, France. Read here.
atNorth joins Nordic Compass to support industry innovation. Read here.
Data Centre Capacity Pricing in Europe Set for Double-Digit Growth Amid Supply Constraints. Read here.
Data center to house supercomputer planned for university campus in Guimarães, Portugal. Read here.
Data center firm AiOnX has secured a US hyperscaler for its debut campus outside Dublin, Ireland. Read here.
BT and StackIT partner on sovereign cloud in EU. Read here.
Middle East & Africa
Abu Dhabi’s Phoenix Group Partners with DC Max to Unlock $8 Billion European AI Data Center Opportunity, with Lyon, France as First Deployment. Read here.
APAC
NEXTDC KL1 Kuala Lumpur Goes Live: Malaysia’s Premier AI-Ready Data Centre Opens for Business. Read here.
Aussie investment firm Alceon launches data center fund, invests in Insite DC. Read here.
Korea, UAE forge alliance to build AI architecture. Read here.
Equinix to invest US$ 190 million to build new data center in Cyberjaya, Malaysia. Read here.
Malaysia and China firms mull US$250 million investment in 32MW AI data center in Perak, Malaysia. Read here.
Developer withdraws plans for Perth datacentre after fierce community opposition. Read here.
Zerra DC files for six-building data center campus in Melbourne, Australia. Read here.
SoftBank launches Japan battery business for AI data centres. Read here.
$500 Million Uber India Data Center Project Advances With Adani Group Partnership. Read here.
North America
Quality Growth Companies Introduces QII to Build Powered Infrastructure for AI Factories and Advanced Manufacturing. Read here.
Nebius breaks ground on gigawatt-scale AI factory in Independence, Missouri. Read here.
Blackstone’s data-center REIT targets AI boom with $1.75B IPO, priced at $20. Read here.
VoltaGrid Announces $1 Billion Strategic Equity Investment from Blackstone and Halliburton to Fund Growth and Acquisition of Propell. Read here.
Google files for data center campus outside Richmond, Virginia. Read here.
Powered land company Cloverleaf proposing 633-acre data center in Canadian County, Oklahoma. Read here.
Jacobs awarded EPCM contract to deliver second Hut 8 AI data center in Texas. Read here.
Fisk University Launches $1 Bn Quantum Leap Plan Anchored by 100,000 sq ft Data Centre in Nashville. Read here.
Prime files to build two data centers outside Austin, Texas. Read here.
Edged files to develop 2 million sq ft data center campus outside Austin, Texas. Read here.
Meta’s $10 billion Louisiana data center is getting $3.3 billion in tax breaks. Read here.
Developers file application for $1.6bn data center in Cleveland, Ohio. Read here.
City (Hillsboro) Hears Feedback On Data Center Proposal. Read here.
Developer eyes Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, for new data center development. Read here.
$15B Wisconsin AI data centre campus signals a new building era. Read here.
Former Walmart in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, could become data center. Read here.
Amazon acquires leased data center in Virginia for $65 million. Read here.
Texas county passes 1-year data center construction ban. Read here.
South America
Terranova moves forward with data center in Chile following regional US$1.5bn plan. Read here.
Space
SpaceX and Google Are in Talks to Launch Data Centers in Orbit. Read here.
Cowboy Space Wants to Put AI Data Centers in Orbit Using Its Own Rockets. Read here.
Other interesting articles
Tracking Hyperscale AI Data Center Growth with Satellite Imagery. Read here.
You Can’t Just Plug in a Data Center. Read here.
Data Centers in Space: A Pipe Dream, or AI’s Next Big Thing? Read here.
Why The Data Center Boom May Be Digging In The Wrong Dirt. Read here.
Data Centre Club
Are you in? Join here.
Have a great week.