Tony Qorri

Twenty years working in mission-critical infrastructure brings many crucial lessons. Like the importance of people and effective community engagement in any construction project, an understanding of the need for continuous innovation and evolution, or that without flexibility modern data centres can very easily fail. 

Tony Qorri has lived this experience over more than two decades in the industry, moving through a career that spans general contract building of enterprise sites for financial firms in downtown Manhattan to his current role as Vice President, Construction at data centre innovator DataBank.

That experience has enabled Tony to play an important role in DataBank's rapid expansion. The company currently operates in 25 markets with 75 data centres. In 2025 it delivered 75MW of commissioned capacity, a figure it expects to jump to 250MW over 2026. Between 2025 and 2030, DataBank aims to turn on approximately 1GW of capacity – a scale and scope that seemed inconceivable during Tony’s early days at the business, where it was focused on 20 to 40 megawatt developments.

At the heart of this growth is DataBank’s unique approach to data centre construction, centred around standardised and campus-based environments capable of meeting rapidly changing market conditions and the intensifying demand on key infrastructure. 

Just as DataBank has evolved, so too has the industry, spurred by huge demand for AI, the ongoing adoption of cloud computing and shifting expectations around performance, energy use and sustainability. 

Early in Tony’s career, facilities operated with raised floors, equipment spread across the space and workloads measured in a couple of kilowatts per cabinet. Today, DataBank’s infrastructure is designed for AI workloads exceeding 130kW and more, rethinks the traditional approach to density, cooling and energy strategy and provides rapid adaptability for customers. 

While the speed to develop has increased exponentially, Tony says AI is not the sole driver: "There are companies out there really focused on just solely AI development. Conversely, DataBank is very versatile. We do have some AI clients, but a lot of our work is still centred around major enterprise customers, many of which we have worked with for 10 or 15 years.” 

DataBank's USP centres on adaptability and flexibility rather than specialisation. The company’s approach to infrastructure allows it to serve enterprise customers with traditional workloads alongside clients pursuing machine learning and high-density computing strategies. 

This combination requires bespoke infrastructure made in close collaboration with customers that can pivot between different requirements without the need for a rebuild or significant change programme.

"We have really evolved and we have to continue to be versatile," Tony says. "AI has certainly changed some of our approach in terms of infrastructure we deploy, like switchgear as an example. What companies like us may have focused on in the past has evolved because of the growing demand for hybrid solutions. In particular, there is a big focus on density now and shrinking building size. But most importantly, we’re having to focus on future proofing sites – data centres have to be ready for AI or machine learning workloads."