Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's comment that liquid-cooled AI racks will need no chillers created some turbulence — however, the concept of a chiller-free data center is an old one and is unlikely to suit most operators.
AI in data center operations is shifting from experimentation to early production use. Adoption remains cautious and bounded, focused on practical automation that supports operators rather than replacing them.
In 2026, enterprises will be more realistic about their use of generative AI, prioritizing simple use cases that deliver clear, timely value over those more innovative projects where returns — and successful outcomes — are less assured.
Investment in large-scale AI has accelerated the development of electrical equipment, which creates opportunities for data center designers and operators to rethink power architectures.
The European Commission plans to finalize the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) delegated regulations on June 10, 2026. The draft amendments may increase the quantity of reportable EED information and establish a data center labeling program.
DLC was developed to handle high heat loads from densified IT. True mainstream DLC adoption remains elusive; it still awaits design refinements to address outstanding operational issues for mission-critical applications.
The use of on-site natural gas power generation for big data centers will strain operators’ ability to meet net-zero carbon goals. To counter this, operators will increasingly explore, promote and in some cases deploy carbon capture and storage.
European national grid operators are advised to adopt proposed grid code requirements to protect their infrastructure from risks, such as data center activity, even though Commission action on the issue has stalled.
Cloud sovereignty is often treated as binary choice, but, in reality, it is a spectrum shaped by law, operations, technologies and supply chains. This framework explains the differences between sovereign public cloud options.
DLC introduces challenges at all levels of data center commissioning. Some end users accept CDUs without factory witness testing — a significant departure from the conventional commissioning script
Cybercriminals increasingly target supply chains as entry points for coordinated attacks; however, many vulnerabilities have been overlooked by operators and persist, despite their growing risk and severity.
Simple arithmetic shows that newly constructed, large-scale private data centers with high occupancy rates can sometimes undercut colos on unit costs, but in most cases colos remain significantly cheaper.
Nvidia’s DSX proposal outlines a software-led model where digital twins, modular design and automation could shape how future gigawatt-scale AI facilities operate, even though the approach remains largely conceptual.
The Uptime Intelligence research agenda includes a list of published and planned data center research reports for 2026, focusing on: AI workloads, power, cooling, sustainability, resiliency, operations, staffing, and security.
Nvidia’s DGX-Ready certification for colocation facilities has been around for nearly six years, yet what the program actually entails remains obscure.
Daniel Bizo
Dr. Rand Talib
Dr. Owen Rogers
Jay Dietrich
Jacqueline Davis
Peter Judge
John O'Brien
Douglas Donnellan
Max Smolaks