Connect | New York // DCD>Debate: Are we overbuilding megawatts in the wrong places?

Go to the 2027 site
  • —
  • Mission Critical Power
  • Investment & Markets
  • Open Session

Speakers

John Hawkins

Global Cloud Data Center Real Estate Lead, IBM

Alise Porto

SVP of Energy and Sustainability, Switch

Nikodem Pancewicz

Nikodem Pancewicz

Principal Energy Strategy, Equinix

Brandon Ripley

Senior Vice President, Construction and Power Infrastructure, Penzance

Sarah Zilonis

Senior Content Director, Yotta

As AI demand accelerates, utilities are tightening terms while developers race to secure capacity, often ahead of real demand. The market is shifting from “pay as you use” to “pay whether you use it or not”, as hyperscalers reserve vast power blocks while interconnection queues grow and local communities question energy use, costs, and land impact. This debate brings together utilities, cloud providers, and financiers to ask whether capacity is being built in the right regions and how current strategies affect grid planning and investment in 2026 and beyond.

This discussion will address:

  • How AI workloads are changing regional power demand and siting decisions
  • What overbuilding and stranded capacity mean for long-term investment
  • How regional differences shape interconnection timelines and project viability
  • How financing terms and take-or-pay models are influencing developer behaviour
  • What smarter, data-driven capacity planning could look like in the AI era