Data Center View - August 1, 2025 - Meta unveils massive AI data center projects

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NEWS ROUNDUP

DEVELOPMENT: Meta unveils massive AI data center projects. Meta is accelerating its AI ambitions with Hyperion, a new data center project in Louisiana designed to eventually deliver 5 gigawatts of compute power to its newly formed Meta Superintelligence Lab. The facility—expected to span an area equivalent to most of Manhattan—will support training and deployment of Meta’s frontier AI models. Prometheus, another Meta initiative, will go live in New Albany, Ohio by 2026 as a 1 GW AI supercluster, becoming one of the largest privately operated AI data centers globally. Together, Hyperion and Prometheus are central to Meta’s plan to compete with OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic in the AI infrastructure arms race. Meta spokesperson Ashley Gabriel confirmed that Hyperion's initial phase will bring 2 GW online by 2030 in Richland Parish, where Meta previously committed $10 billion. Scaling to 5 GW will follow. These capacities reflect a dramatic shift in AI infrastructure, with Meta’s stack likely to attract more top-tier talent, including recent recruits like Alexandr Wang (ex-Scale AI) and Daniel Gross (ex-Safe Superintelligence).

FUNDRAISING: Drake Real Estate closes $515 million fund. Drake Real Estate Partners has closed its fifth flagship fund, Drake Real Estate Partners Fund V (DREP Fund V), with more than $515 million in commitments, surpassing its original $500 million target despite a tough capital raising climate. “This outcome is a testament to the long-term relationships we’ve built and our deliberate expansion into the U.S. and European institutional landscape, which complements our longstanding ties in Latin America,” said Nicolas Ibanez, Co-Founder and President. Launched in one of the most challenging fundraising environments in recent history, the fund positions Drake to capitalize on market dislocations with what David Cotterman, Co-Founder and CIO, described as “one of the most compelling risk/return profiles we’ve seen since the firm’s inception.” DREP Fund V targets value-add to opportunistic returns while assuming core plus to light value-add risk, aligning with themes Drake has pursued since its founding in 2012.

MARKET: Iron Mountain to announce Q2 2025 earnings on August 6. Iron Mountain will release its second-quarter 2025 financial results on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, before market open. The company will also hold a conference call the same day to discuss the results. All related materials—including the press release, slides, and supplemental data—will be available on Iron Mountain’s investor relations website. Iron Mountain serves over 240,000 customers in 61 countries, including 95% of the Fortune 1000, offering services that span information management, digital transformation, and data center operations.

PEOPLE MOVES: Equinix appoints new Chief Customer and Revenue Officer. Equinix has appointed Shane Paladin as its new Executive Vice President and Chief Customer and Revenue Officer (CCRO), effective immediately. Paladin will oversee Sales, Marketing, Customer Experience, Revenue Operations, and strategic partnerships, driving Equinix’s global go-to-market strategy and customer success efforts. As CCRO, Paladin will also leverage data, analytics, and AI to optimize revenue growth and enhance customer engagement. He will report directly to CEO Adaire Fox-Martin, who praised his track record and ability to lead large-scale transformations.

READ: Climate threats to data centers set to surge - report.

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