In today’s follow-up to last week’s story on Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), we do a rapid-fire Q&A with BESS expert Juan González Martínez, Energy Manager USA for Mexico City-based IGSA Power, a specialist in manufacturing of power generators and infrastructure for critical IT and medical operations.
Read here to see why centralized, large-scale BESS is more effective for AI campuses, and why BESS as an “islandable” backbone of a behind-the-meter microgrid can work in tandem with on-site generation (gas turbines, fuel cells, solar) to sustain facilities during blackouts and emergencies.
Susana Schwartz
Technology Editor
RCRTech
AI Infrastructure Top Stories
Southeast Asia DC expansion: AirTrunk will grow its Malaysia footprint with a $3 billion data center investment and a total investment of approximately $6.8 billion for what will be 700MW of IT capacity. New facilities will be located in Iskandar Puteri.
Edge doesn’t forgive data center thinking: If you didn’t make RCRTech’s Defense Communications Forum, check out the on-demand version to hear defense leaders, technology innovators, and system integrators explore defense-grade requirements.
Amazon’s satellite bet: Why did Amazon spend $11B on acquiring satellite player GlobalStar at a time when Elon Musk’s Starlink dominates? Find out in today’s RCRTV interview with Luke Pearce, principal analyst of CSS Insights.
AI Today: What You Need to Know
Pressure on copper, aluminum, steel prices: Industrial metal prices have seen a mix of record-high consolidation and localized volatility, largely driven by China’s pre-holiday restocking and ongoing Middle East supply risks.
‘Smart concrete’ uptake: A report by the Global Concrete Association projected the market for “concrete ready” innovations—including sensor-integrated smart concrete— will reach $700B by 2026, with a 35% smart-tech adoption rate.
$1.4T in planned utility spending: Investor-owned utilities are planning to spend at least $1.4 trillion over the next 5 years through 2030 on Capex—a more than 21% increase over the $1.1 trillion over a five-year period outlined last year.
Omdia SemiDynamics report: Chief analyst Bruce Bateman says now is “the most structurally risky period for the industry since the post-COVID-19 correction,” as detailed in Omdia’s SemiDynamics 2026 Q1 Report on semi’s “perfect storm.”
Get operational in under a year: According to Eaton’s JP Buzzell, VP data center chief architect, operators can get operational in as little 11-13 months by “using modular/prefabricated builds and predictive energy modeling.”
DPR’s Market Conditions Report: Preconstruction leader Roel Aguilar says the report shows that while data centers are headlining the news, “the bigger story is how owners across all sectors can rethink delivery to gain speed to market.”
RCR Events
Defense Communications Forum, April 28th
Join defense leaders, technology innovators and system integrators and explore how commercial network solutions can be adapted to meet defense-grade requirements, enabling secure, resilient, AI-driven, multi-bearer networks.
Test & Measurement Forum, May 19
Join the annual Test & Measurement Forum where industry leaders, innovators, and engineers come together to tackle the most pressing test and measurement challenges in telco today. Register now
Telco AI Forum brings together operators, vendors, hyperscalers, and academia to explore how the industry and partnership ecosystem evolution are laying the foundations for AI-native 6G networks and unlocking ROI. Register now
Industry Resources
Webinar, May 21st: Securing telecom infrastructure for the quantum era
Report: AI in testing: Developing trust, delivering results
Report: Test, measurement and service assurance in the AI era
Whitepaper: Powering sovereign AI at scale
Whitepaper: Scalable database design for 5G and beyond
Report: Networks at the frontline: How 6G, ISAC and NTNs will redefine defense technologies
Summit Access: GSMA Device Enablement Summit: How operators can fix device-network fragmentation
