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With the full acquisition of LiquidStack, Trane Technologies aims to expand its data center cooling portfolio
In sum – what to know:
Trane moves into liquid cooling – The company will acquire LiquidStack, adding direct-to-chip and immersion cooling technologies to its data center thermal management portfolio.
Focus on AI-driven heat loads – The deal targets rising chip-level power densities and variable AI workloads, which are driving demand for integrated cooling systems.
Close expected in early 2026 – Financial terms were not disclosed, and LiquidStack will operate within Trane’s Commercial HVAC Americas unit after the transaction.
Trane Technologies has signed a definitive agreement to acquire LiquidStack, a developer of liquid cooling systems for data centers, as it looks to strengthen its position in thermal management for high-density computing environments.
LiquidStack provides direct-to-chip and immersion cooling systems designed for high-performance computing and AI-driven data center workloads. The company’s technologies are used by hyperscale operators and other organizations seeking to manage rising power densities and heat loads.
Trane Technologies first invested in LiquidStack in 2023. With the full acquisition, the company aims to expand its data center cooling portfolio, which includes chillers, heat rejection systems, controls, liquid distribution and on-chip cooling solutions.
The transaction will also bring LiquidStack’s engineering, manufacturing, and research operations in Texas and Hong Kong into Trane’s Commercial HVAC business unit in the Americas. LiquidStack’s global workforce will join the company, and co-founder and CEO Joe Capes will take a leadership role within Trane while continuing to oversee the LiquidStack business.
Trane said the deal is intended to support growing demand for integrated cooling systems that can address increasing chip-level power densities and variable AI workloads. By combining its central plant and building-level cooling expertise with LiquidStack’s liquid and immersion technologies, the company plans to offer end-to-end thermal solutions across data center environments.
The acquisition is expected to close in early 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms of the transaction. were not disclosed.
In a previous interview with RCR Wireless News, Joe Capes, CEO of LiquidStack, noted that as AI workloads push data centers to new thermal and power limits, liquid cooling technology is no longer optional.
“Liquid cooling is a means of removing heat or providing thermal management for data center components. What’s really happened in the last two years is with the advent of AI scale-up and much higher power from GPUs and CPUs, we’re seeing the adoption of direct-to-chip liquid cooling most prominently,” Capes said.
This method, he explained, circulates a cooled liquid directly over processors through a cold plate, efficiently capturing and removing heat. Though the technology dates back to IBM’s mainframes in the 1950s, Capes said its broad adoption today is driven by AI’s escalating power demands.
According to Capes, the notion that liquid cooling is complex or costly is outdated. “The biggest misconceptions are that liquid cooling is difficult or expensive to deploy,” he said. “Using liquid cooling can be 40% to 50% more efficient than air cooling for AI workloads.”
