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Marcus Hassen

Vice President - Mission Critical Operations Group Manager, Truist

Marcus Hassan

Marcus Hassen

Vice President - Mission Critical Operations Group Manager, Truist

Marcus is a seasoned technology leader with over 25 years of industry experience spanning management, engineering, construction, commissioning, and operations with a focus on data centers and advanced technology sectors.

He is a recognized data center industry Thought Leader with an ardent understanding of the nature of the critical environment and its reliance on the design, construction and commissioning of its technology and facility infrastructure systems and the proper training and readiness of its operations staff to successfully deliver on its fundamental business mission.

Marcus has authored trade articles and served as an event speaker / panelist on design, energy efficiency, sustainability, and operational best practices in the mission critical environment. He is an Uptime Institute Network Member Principal, Contributor to the Data Center Dynamics Management and Operations Channel, and Board Member of the Carolinas Chapter of the 7x24 Exchange, serving as the organization's Thought Leadership Committee Chairman.

Marcus was appointed in 2021 as Chair of the ASHRAE SSPC 90.4 Energy Standard for Data Centers Committee. He is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and joined Truist in 2021 as Mission Critical Operations Group Manager.

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Rick Galietta

Director, Office of the CTO - Enterprise Strategy and Platform Enablement, Digital Realty

Rick Galietta

Rick Galietta

Director, Office of the CTO - Enterprise Strategy and Platform Enablement, Digital Realty

Rick Galietta is Director, Office of the CTO - Enterprise Strategy and Platform Enablement. Rick's role includes accelerating collaboration, innovation, and growth for leading enterprises and service providers on the world’s largest data center platform.

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Kenneth Moreano

Kenneth Moreano

Co-Founder, President & CEO, Scott Data Centers

Emily Bowers

Senior Director, State and Local Affairs, Green Building Initiative

Emily Bowers

Emily Bowers

Senior Director, State and Local Affairs, Green Building Initiative

As Senior Director of State & Local Affairs, Emily works with state and local government entities, as well as interested policymakers, to provide resources and support in the shared pursuit of reducing climate impacts in the built environment. By working closely with local decision makers to open markets to GBI tools, Emily ensures that communities have access to innovative resources, relationships, and strategies that help promote their sustainable goals.

Emily comes to GBI with a background in housing, labor, and lighting design policy, and has nearly a decade of experience working in advocacy, outreach, and government affairs. She is passionate about fostering policies that impact the built environment, and prior to GBI, worked to advance lighting quality, energy efficiency, and the adoption of codes and guidelines that promote sustainability for an international association based out of Chicago, Illinois.

Emily holds a bachelor’s degree in public policy from Georgia State University and a master’s degree in public policy from Northwestern University. She currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Joseph Rubino

Vice President, Real Estate & Investment, TECfusions

Joseph Rubino

Joseph Rubino

Vice President, Real Estate & Investment, TECfusions

Joseph Rubino is a seasoned real estate professional with a diverse background in private equity real estate and commercial real estate analysis. Currently serving as the Vice President of Real Estate at TECfusions in Tampa, Florida, he brings over six years of experience to his role. Prior to joining TECfusions, Joseph spent six years at CenterSquare Investment Management in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, where he held various positions, including Private Equity Real Estate Associate and Senior Analyst. His expertise lies in value-add and core-plus real estate acquisitions, joint venture equity, direct investments, and structured transactions. With a strong foundation in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and real estate private equity, Joseph has honed his skills in analyzing commercial real estate markets and identifying investment opportunities.

Before his tenure at CenterSquare Investment Management, Joseph gained valuable experience as a Commercial Real Estate Analyst at Carey, Kramer, Pettit, Panichelli & Assoc., Inc. in Wayne, Pennsylvania. In this role, he contributed to originating significant commercial debt and asset management of a substantial loan portfolio, representing prominent clients including REITs, real estate funds, and large institutional developers. Joseph’s multifaceted career trajectory reflects his ability to excel in dynamic and challenging environments within the real estate industry, showcasing his proficiency in capital markets, commercial real estate analysis, and strategic decision-making.

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The explosive rise of generative AI has ignited a massive investment surge, but with it comes a fundamental question: what business models can truly sustain this rapid growth? OpenAI's ambitious proposal for a 5GW data center, potentially the largest in the world, exemplifies the scale of the AI infrastructure boom, with an estimated cost of $100 billion and expected returns of $40 billion annually.

As tech giants bet big on AI cloud infrastructure in states like New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio, the strain on power supplies, cooling systems, and specialized hardware is palpable. With AI’s reliance on expensive chips, including the influx of bitcoin miners pivoting to AI, will hardware costs spiral, or will economies of scale eventually stabilize prices? If an AI investment bubble is inflating, could we see financial losses for data centers left holding the bill on costly infrastructure without long-term returns? And what does this all mean for regulators who may already be struggling to keep pace with the latest technological innovations?

Held under Chatham House Rule, DCD>Debates are open discussions led by a panel of experts on the most pressing issues in the industry.