AI Data Centers | Kisaco Research

AI Data Centers

AI Data Centers

Author:

Matt Pfile

CEO
Crane Data Centers

Matt Pfile is the founder and CEO of Crane Data Centers Inc., a data center developer and operator with a strong commitment to sustainability, customer centricity, and innovation. He has over 25 years of experience in telecom engineering, critical infrastructure acquisition, corporate banking, management consulting, and commercial negotiations. Prior to Crane, he spent 12+ years at Google leading over $5B of global infrastructure acquisitions and led the entry of Google Cloud Platform (GCP) into Australia and Japan, data center site selection strategy, third-party data center leasing, utility interconnections, and land acquisitions across the Americas and Asia. He received a degree in finance from Georgetown University and an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

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Matt Pfile

CEO
Crane Data Centers

Matt Pfile is the founder and CEO of Crane Data Centers Inc., a data center developer and operator with a strong commitment to sustainability, customer centricity, and innovation. He has over 25 years of experience in telecom engineering, critical infrastructure acquisition, corporate banking, management consulting, and commercial negotiations. Prior to Crane, he spent 12+ years at Google leading over $5B of global infrastructure acquisitions and led the entry of Google Cloud Platform (GCP) into Australia and Japan, data center site selection strategy, third-party data center leasing, utility interconnections, and land acquisitions across the Americas and Asia. He received a degree in finance from Georgetown University and an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

Author:

Michael Bahr

Head of Infrastructure, Data Center & Networking
DWR

Mike Bahr joined DRW Holdings in 2013 and has built co-locations and stand-alone data centers for trading firms all over the world. Mike is also in charge of all MEP designs for all company offices globally. Mike also is co-founder of a start-up, Co-Low.com, a true subscription based colocation/data center finder for all IT needs. Mike lives in Crown Point, IN with his wife Colleen and his four children.

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Michael Bahr

Head of Infrastructure, Data Center & Networking
DWR

Mike Bahr joined DRW Holdings in 2013 and has built co-locations and stand-alone data centers for trading firms all over the world. Mike is also in charge of all MEP designs for all company offices globally. Mike also is co-founder of a start-up, Co-Low.com, a true subscription based colocation/data center finder for all IT needs. Mike lives in Crown Point, IN with his wife Colleen and his four children.

Author:

Bernie Malouin

CEO
JetCool, A Flex Company

Bernie Malouin is CEO of JetCool, A Flex Company.

Dedicating over 15 years to cooling innovation, Dr. Bernie Malouin is at the forefront of revolutionizing liquid cooling solutions in high-power electronics for data centers. He began his career at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, where he pioneered and patented microconvective liquid cooling technology—a breakthrough that enhances cooling efficiency by directing fluid jets at processor hotspots, setting a new standard for thermal management.

As the founder of JetCool, Malouin collaborates with chipmakers, OEMs, and hyperscalers to advance high-performance computing and AI workloads. In November 2024, JetCool was acquired by Flex, a global manufacturing and supply chain solutions provider, to bolster its data center and power portfolio.  Following the acquisition, Malouin leads JetCool’s liquid cooling initiatives within the Communications, Enterprise, and Cloud (CEC) division. In this capacity, he continues to drive the industry toward greater efficiency, resiliency, and environmental sustainability.

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Bernie Malouin

CEO
JetCool, A Flex Company

Bernie Malouin is CEO of JetCool, A Flex Company.

Dedicating over 15 years to cooling innovation, Dr. Bernie Malouin is at the forefront of revolutionizing liquid cooling solutions in high-power electronics for data centers. He began his career at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, where he pioneered and patented microconvective liquid cooling technology—a breakthrough that enhances cooling efficiency by directing fluid jets at processor hotspots, setting a new standard for thermal management.

As the founder of JetCool, Malouin collaborates with chipmakers, OEMs, and hyperscalers to advance high-performance computing and AI workloads. In November 2024, JetCool was acquired by Flex, a global manufacturing and supply chain solutions provider, to bolster its data center and power portfolio.  Following the acquisition, Malouin leads JetCool’s liquid cooling initiatives within the Communications, Enterprise, and Cloud (CEC) division. In this capacity, he continues to drive the industry toward greater efficiency, resiliency, and environmental sustainability.

Author:

Chris Sharp

CTO
Digital Realty

Chris Sharp has over 20 years of experience in the technology industry, with an extensive background in developing technology strategies in global markets. He has a deep knowledge of the data center sector and is well positioned to expand technical innovation at Digital Realty.

Most recently, he was responsible for cloud innovation at Equinix, where he led the development of innovative cloud services solutions and developed new capabilities enabling next-generation, high-performance exchange, and interconnection solutions, facilitating broad commercial adoption of cloud computing on a global basis.

Previously, Chris held leadership positions at top network and colocation providers, including Qwest Communications, MCI/Verizon Business and Reliance Globalcom.

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Chris Sharp

CTO
Digital Realty

Chris Sharp has over 20 years of experience in the technology industry, with an extensive background in developing technology strategies in global markets. He has a deep knowledge of the data center sector and is well positioned to expand technical innovation at Digital Realty.

Most recently, he was responsible for cloud innovation at Equinix, where he led the development of innovative cloud services solutions and developed new capabilities enabling next-generation, high-performance exchange, and interconnection solutions, facilitating broad commercial adoption of cloud computing on a global basis.

Previously, Chris held leadership positions at top network and colocation providers, including Qwest Communications, MCI/Verizon Business and Reliance Globalcom.

Panelists

Author:

Marc Hourican

CTO
CleanArc Data Centers

A technical leader, Marc has led the design and construction of large-scale data center projects across the United States as well as in the Middle East and Asia. His projects have included greenfield, brownfield, build to suite, and adaptive reuse projects for colocation, corporate, and hyperscale data center customers.

Before joining CleanArc, Marc held leadership positions at leading data center consultancy firms Orchard Green Associates, Smith Engineering, PLLC and Syska Hennessy Group. Marc takes pride in understanding the technical and cultural nuances required for project execution across geographies. At CleanArc, he takes a collaborative and comprehensive approach to project management and execution, bridging the gaps between infrastructure and design/construction teams as CleanArc works to deliver best-in-class reliability, sustainability, supply chain management and capital efficiency during the entire data center life cycle. Marc holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology and an MS in Real Estate from the NYU Shack Institute of Real Estate.

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Marc Hourican

CTO
CleanArc Data Centers

A technical leader, Marc has led the design and construction of large-scale data center projects across the United States as well as in the Middle East and Asia. His projects have included greenfield, brownfield, build to suite, and adaptive reuse projects for colocation, corporate, and hyperscale data center customers.

Before joining CleanArc, Marc held leadership positions at leading data center consultancy firms Orchard Green Associates, Smith Engineering, PLLC and Syska Hennessy Group. Marc takes pride in understanding the technical and cultural nuances required for project execution across geographies. At CleanArc, he takes a collaborative and comprehensive approach to project management and execution, bridging the gaps between infrastructure and design/construction teams as CleanArc works to deliver best-in-class reliability, sustainability, supply chain management and capital efficiency during the entire data center life cycle. Marc holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology and an MS in Real Estate from the NYU Shack Institute of Real Estate.

Author:

Ryan Mallory

President & COO
Flexential

Ryan Mallory is President and COO at Flexential, and has 25+ years’ experience leading global infrastructure operations across network, platform, and customer-facing functions for top-tier data center providers.

At Flexential, Ryan leads day-to-day operations across all company functions—scaling the company’s national platform of 40+ data centers and a 100Gbps+ private network backbone to meet the demands of today’s high-density compute environments. Since joining in 2020, Ryan has helped advance the FlexAnywhere® platform, unifying colocation, interconnection, cloud, and managed services into a scalable solution for enterprises navigating AI, digital transformation, and compliance complexity.

Before Flexential, Ryan held leadership roles at Equinix, Digital Realty, XO Communications, SAVVIS, and UUNET.

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Ryan Mallory

President & COO
Flexential

Ryan Mallory is President and COO at Flexential, and has 25+ years’ experience leading global infrastructure operations across network, platform, and customer-facing functions for top-tier data center providers.

At Flexential, Ryan leads day-to-day operations across all company functions—scaling the company’s national platform of 40+ data centers and a 100Gbps+ private network backbone to meet the demands of today’s high-density compute environments. Since joining in 2020, Ryan has helped advance the FlexAnywhere® platform, unifying colocation, interconnection, cloud, and managed services into a scalable solution for enterprises navigating AI, digital transformation, and compliance complexity.

Before Flexential, Ryan held leadership roles at Equinix, Digital Realty, XO Communications, SAVVIS, and UUNET.

Moderator

Author:

Karen Petersburg

VP, Data Center Development & Construction
PowerHouse Data Centers

Karen oversees the planning and execution large scale data center projects for AREP’s PowerHouse Data Center platform.

Karen brings almost two decades of design, sustainability, and project management experience in the mission-critical sector, having successfully managed complex sustainable data center design and engineering projects, including campus developments, hyperscale built-to-suits, and major infrastructure renovations. As a sustainability SME, Karen was recently honored by the Green Building Initiative (GBI) as its 2024 Member of the Year for her exceptional dedication to improving the built environment.

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Karen Petersburg

VP, Data Center Development & Construction
PowerHouse Data Centers

Karen oversees the planning and execution large scale data center projects for AREP’s PowerHouse Data Center platform.

Karen brings almost two decades of design, sustainability, and project management experience in the mission-critical sector, having successfully managed complex sustainable data center design and engineering projects, including campus developments, hyperscale built-to-suits, and major infrastructure renovations. As a sustainability SME, Karen was recently honored by the Green Building Initiative (GBI) as its 2024 Member of the Year for her exceptional dedication to improving the built environment.

Author:

Phill Lawson-Shanks

Chief Innovation Officer
Aligned Data Centers

Phill has more than 25 years of experience identifying new opportunities for further growth of leading data center infrastructure, network architecture, and cloud solutions in the U.S. and abroad.

As Chief Innovation Officer at Aligned, Phill is responsible for the management of revenue generation and profitability objectives, as well as championing key innovation, technology, and sustainability strategies aimed at maximizing new business development.

Prior to joining Aligned, Phill served as Chief Innovation Officer at EdgeConneX, where he was instrumental in driving strategies focused on creating the next generation of network edge-based data centers for the digital content ecosystem. Throughout his career, Phill has also served in numerous senior executive-level positions at Virtacore, Alcatel-Lucent, Savvis (now CenturyLink Technology Solutions), and MCI (now Verizon Digital Media Services). He currently holds eight active technology patents and serves on the Board of Directors for Netrality Data Centers as well as the Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA) Advisory Board.

 

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Phill Lawson-Shanks

Chief Innovation Officer
Aligned Data Centers

Phill has more than 25 years of experience identifying new opportunities for further growth of leading data center infrastructure, network architecture, and cloud solutions in the U.S. and abroad.

As Chief Innovation Officer at Aligned, Phill is responsible for the management of revenue generation and profitability objectives, as well as championing key innovation, technology, and sustainability strategies aimed at maximizing new business development.

Prior to joining Aligned, Phill served as Chief Innovation Officer at EdgeConneX, where he was instrumental in driving strategies focused on creating the next generation of network edge-based data centers for the digital content ecosystem. Throughout his career, Phill has also served in numerous senior executive-level positions at Virtacore, Alcatel-Lucent, Savvis (now CenturyLink Technology Solutions), and MCI (now Verizon Digital Media Services). He currently holds eight active technology patents and serves on the Board of Directors for Netrality Data Centers as well as the Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA) Advisory Board.