Making Sense The data center surge: Building the backbone of the digital age
8 snips
Sep 23, 2025 Scott Wilcoxen, Global Head of Digital Infrastructure Investment Banking at J.P. Morgan, shares his insights into the booming realm of data centers and connectivity. He discusses the staggering capital required to fuel AI and cloud expansion, as well as the unique financing challenges involved. Scott highlights the risks of overbuilding and the vital role operational expertise plays in this high-stakes environment. His expertise sheds light on how J.P. Morgan positions itself to navigate these complexities, offering unmatched support across the capital stack.
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Physical Backbone Of The Cloud
- Digital infrastructure is the physical backbone—fiber, towers, data centers—that makes internet experiences possible.
- Scott Wilcoxen highlights billions in physical assets underlie the “cloud” and everyday apps.
Infrastructure Traits Plus Rapid Growth
- Digital infra shares classic infrastructure traits like high capex and long-term contracts but adds rapid growth.
- Wilcoxen emphasizes strong moats from scale, permitting, and mission-critical contracts.
AI Drives Gigawatt-Scale Builds
- The AI-driven build cycle requires much larger data centers, moving from ~50MW to gigawatt campuses.
- Wilcoxen calls the capital need "huge, large, and unprecedented" and cites trillion-dollar estimates.
