5 Notable Data Center Links, Jan. 3 2026
The Rise of Onsite Power, AI Trend Recap for 2025, More Jet Engines for Data Centers
Happy New Year! This week we begin our 2026 Forecast coverage at Data Center Richness. Over the next two weeks, we’ll feature a series of articles highlighting my takes on the important themes for this year.
Each week I curate 5 links from the data center sector that I find particularly interesting, with my commentary on why they merit your attention.
Sound interesting? Subscribe and get them each week.
5 Notable Links
How AI Labs Are Solving the Power Crisis: The Onsite Power Deep Dive - This piece from SemiAnalysis on Substack is essential reading on the relevance of onsite power for data centers, the various approaches (turbines, reciprocating engines, fuel cells), and the economics and availability of engines. The piece has lots of charts and examples of data centers using different approaches to onsite generation. “AI infrastructure cannot wait for the grid’s multiyear transmission upgrades,” SemiAnalysis notes. “Getting a 400 MW datacenter online even six months earlier is worth billions. Economic need dwarfs problems like an overloaded electric grid.”
FTAI Enters Data Center Market With Aeroderivative Engines - Aircraft leasing specialist FTAI Aviation has launched FTAI Power, a new platform focused on converting CFM56 engines to power turbines for delivering energy to data centers. FTAI says that starting in 2026 it will “have the capacity to deliver over 100 units annually and provide service support solutions that maximize uptime.” The CFM56 is one of the most popular turbofan engines, widely used in the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737NG aircraft. This follows closely on Boom Supersonic’s entry into the data center power market.
The Next Phase of the Digital Infrastructure Economy - This LinkedIn article offers a thoughtful take from Joao Marques Lima, Managing Editor of The Tech Capital, on sentiment about AI demand. “Publicly, the language remains expansive,” Joao writes. “Privately, the tone is different. Conversations are narrower, more conditional, and increasingly selective. The confidence has not disappeared, but it has become more precise. That gap between narrative and reality is where the current state of the infrastructure economy actually sits. … The next phase of growth is likely to be quieter, more disciplined, and more uneven than the headlines imply.”
AI Trends 2025 - I’m reading lots of takes on the trajectory of AI, and this piece from Kenn So at the Generational Substack is well done, particularly in detailing where AI adoption is beginning to move the needle. “Generative AI has moved from early adopters into mainstream production use,” Kenn writes. “It’s no longer about potential—it’s generating real revenue, displacing real labor, and running into real physical constraints.” There’s also a data-packed report to accompany the article.
Data Center Community Engagement Comes of Age: Lessons from 2025, Imperatives for 2026 - This is a good year-end overview of the community resistance to AI data center projects from the Zoning In newsletter. “Several themes repeated themselves with striking consistency,” writes Adam Waitkunas. “Communities are far more informed about energy loads, water sourcing, cumulative infrastructure strain, and environmental impacts associated with hyperscale development. At the same time, opposition has become increasingly organized. According to Data Center Watch, nearly 200 community groups across more than two dozen states are now actively opposing data center projects, sharing legal strategies, expert testimony, and messaging across jurisdictions.” I think this will be a huge issue in 2026. More on this next week.
If you found 5 Notable Links useful, please subscribe so you can get it each week!
I am really enjoying your data center coverage Rich. Looking forward to reading more in 2026.