Gray Oak Power joined Datacloud USA as a Platinum sponsor in Austin. For two days, we met with developers, operators, investors and policymakers working on one of the industry’s most pressing problems: powering the next generation of AI infrastructure.

On the first morning, Gray Oak Power CEO Emilio Vicens spoke on the keynote panel “Behind-the-Meter and On-Time: The BYOP Playbook for 2026” on the Datacloud USA Stage. The panel looked at how bring-your-own-power strategies are helping data center projects stay on schedule, and what the industry has learned from 18 months of interconnection reform and regulatory activity. Emilio covers his takeaways in his LinkedIn article, Power Is Available. But Is It Deliverable?

During Emilio’s JSA TV interview he mentioned that in the last six months Gray Oak Power has grown significantly with 5GW of expected on-site power facilities in four states.

“Power demand is absolutely critical,” he said. “It’s a challenge for the buildouts with pressure the demand puts on the grid connected value chain. There are questions beyond the power build out.” 

The same theme came up across the conference. “Without power, you have nothing!” Power now sits at the start of the development process. Site selection, financing, equipment buying and construction schedules all depend on having a credible path to energization. 

Many of the best discussions in Austin went past headline megawatt figures. People wanted to talk about what it takes to deliver capacity back to the grid. Once you have the power assets, you could eventually provide value beyond the data center by supporting the grid and surrounding communities. Emilio suggests that many questions are still open. How new large-load rules will work in practice is still unclear. Developers are still weighing on-site generation against utility service. And the industry is only starting to plan for who will run and maintain these assets for decades after they come online. 

Datacloud USA was a valuable few days, and it made clear that these conversations are just getting started. Gray Oak Power will stay part of them, both at industry events and in direct work with the developers building this infrastructure.

If you’re working through a power strategy for your next site, our team would welcome the chance to talk. Contact us to set up a time.