Renaissance Capital Alliance, LLC

"U.S. data center power demand could nearly triple in the next three years, and consume as much as 12% of the country's electricity, as the industry undergoes an AI transformation, according to an unpublished Department of Energy-backed report seen by Reuters. The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory report, which is expected to be released on Friday, comes at a time when the U.S. power industry and government agencies attempt to understand how the sudden rise of Big Tech's data center demand will affect electrical grids, power bills and the climate. By 2028, data center annual energy use could have a total power demand of between 74 and 132 gigawatts, or between 6.7% to 12% of total U.S. electricity consumption, according to the Berkeley Lab report. The industry standard-setting report included ranges that depended partly on the availability and demand for a type of AI chip known as GPUs. Currently, data centers make up a little more than 4% the country's power load." #finance #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #financialservices #corporatefinance #datacenters #gpu #ai #energy https://lnkd.in/gKDjKC9e

"Smart ring maker Oura announced on Thursday that it has closed a $200 million Series D funding round, bringing the company’s valuation to $5.2 billion. The round included participation from Fidelity Management and glucose device maker Dexcom. Oura says the new capital will allow it to expand its product offerings and further invest in product, science, AI, and more. The funding will also enable Oura to explore additional acquisitions, the company says. The news comes a month after Oura announced that it was partnering with Dexcom to pave the way for the two companies’ devices and apps to be used together. The partnership means Oura rings will eventually help users monitor their blood sugar, and that the two companies will co-market and cross-sell each other’s products. Oura said at the time that Dexcom would be investing $75 million in its Series D round. 'As we continue to drive momentum and growth, we are bolstered by the additional support of these investors,' said Oura CEO Tom Hale in a press release. 'We’ve made significant progress in advancing our mission to make health a daily practice and will use this funding to unlock new opportunities, with AI development at the center of our strategy. We know that Oura has the potential to change lives at scale, and we’re excited to continue leading the market in innovation while pursuing opportunities that extend beyond the ring.'" #finance #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #financialservices #corporatefinance #oura #smartring #manufacturing #ai https://lnkd.in/dpEtjTyV

"After a strong performance in 2024, the U.S. economy will continue to benefit from a solid labor market, rising household wealth, and resilient consumer spending next year according to the 2025 Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook. Real equipment and software investment growth is projected to be 4.7% in 2025, roughly on par with growth in 2024 with stronger investment activity expected in the latter half of the year. The report, which was prepared by Keybridge and released today by the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation, also forecasts real GDP growth of 2.7% next year, similar to the estimated 2.8% growth observed in 2024. The Foundation's report is focused on the $1.3 trillion equipment leasing and finance industry, and highlights key trends in equipment investment, placing them in the context of the broader U.S. economic climate. Leigh Lytle, President of the Foundation, and President & CEO of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association, said, 'The economy blew past expectations in 2024 as strong consumer spending and business investment pushed growth above trends experienced prior to the pandemic. Data on new loan volume from ELFA’s CapEx Finance Index and executive sentiment in the Foundation’s Monthly Confidence Index suggest that momentum carried through to the fourth quarter, and lines the economy up for a strong 2025. That said, the potential for a trade war and persistent inflation could cause the Federal Reserve to slow the pace of rate decreases, which would weigh on the U.S. economy. Time will tell how all of these things shake out, but if we’ve learned one thing from 2024, it’s to never bet against the strength of American consumers or the resiliency of American business.'" #equipmentleasing #equipmentfinancing #corporatefinance #financialservices #finance #gdp https://lnkd.in/de_Q8-Be

"AI continues to reshuffle power and energy markets with even oil giants like Exxon Mobil getting into the mix. Exxon announced [ last ] week that it’s planning to build a power plant for data centers, reflecting just how much electricity tech companies expect they’ll need in the coming decade. According to one estimate, nearly half of new AI data centers might not have enough power by 2027. The oil and gas company already operates power plants for its own operations, but the new project would be its first for outside customers. The planned power plant would run on natural gas and generate over 1.5 gigawatts. In a twist, Exxon said that it intends to capture and store over 90% of the carbon dioxide the plant produces. The company isn’t planning to connect the power plant to the grid, avoiding the interconnection backlog that has plagued many new power plants. In an annual strategy document published Wednesday, Exxon described the new project as 'reliable, fully-islanded power with no reliance on grid infrastructure.' It did not say where the power plant would be located. Exxon did not reply to a request for comment before publication." #exxon #carboncapture #datacenters #renewableenergy #datacenters #finance #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #financialservices #corporatefinance #ai https://lnkd.in/dQEtuBxb

"Big tech companies spent several months this year touting their investments in nuclear power. Now, the tide is turning to renewables. Google announced on Tuesday that it was funding $20 billion worth of renewable power projects across the U.S. On Wednesday, it was Microsoft’s turn, helping to launch the Climate and Communities Investment Coalition with Acadia Infrastructure Capital. The coalition, which is organized by Acadia, is seeking to invest $9 billion to build 5 gigawatts’ worth of renewable power, enough to power nearly 1 million homes. 'Renewable energy … will continue to expand without corporations. With corporations, the pace becomes exponential,' Brian O’Callaghan, vice president at Acadia, told Reuters." #finance #equipmentfinance #financialservices #corporatefinance #equipmentleasing #microsoft #renewableenergy #energy #google https://lnkd.in/g7nyxSfb

"Air-taxi maker Archer Aviation, said on Thursday it has raised $430 million in fresh capital, part of which will be used to develop a hybrid aircraft with defense tech company Anduril Industries. Shares of Archer were down 4% in early trading. Existing investors United Airlines, and Stellantis, as well as new backers such as Wellington Management and Abu Dhabi investment holding company 2PointZero participated in the fundraising, which was through an equity offering. Anduril, which was founded by entrepreneur Palmer Luckey, and Archer said the aircraft would target a potential 'program of record' — a government approved and authorized acquisition program — from the Pentagon. The companies did not disclose any details of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, including its target entry-into-service date or the investment involved." #anduril #archer #evtol #defense #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #finance #corporatefinance #financialservices https://lnkd.in/eYW6UEqa

"Electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle startup Joby Aviation has launched a public offering to sell up to $300 million of its shares of common stock, per a regulatory filing. Separately, Joby raised $222 million in October from underwriters. This latest filing adds to that offering and would give Joby the chance to raise a total of $522 million as it gears up to launch commercially in 2025. Joby said it will use the proceeds from the raise — together with its existing cash — to fund its certification and manufacturing efforts and for general working capital. Joby plans to launch air taxis for urban transportation next year in New York City and Los Angeles alongside partners Delta Air Lines and Uber, as well as in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The startup also has a $131 million contract with the Department of Defense." #finance #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #financialservices #corporatefinance #joby #delta #uber #evtol https://lnkd.in/dug_kh_Y

"Google on Monday said that it has overcome a key challenge in quantum computing with a new generation of chip, solving a computing problem in five minutes that would take a classical computer more time than the history of the universe. Like other tech giants such as Microsoft and International Business Machines, Alphabet's Google is chasing quantum computing because it promises computing speeds far faster than today's fastest systems. While the math problem solved by the company's Santa Barbara, California quantum lab does not have commercial applications, Google hopes quantum computers will one day solve problems in medicine, battery chemistry and artificial intelligence that are out of reach for today's computers. The results released Monday came from a new chip called Willow that has 105 "qubits," which are the building blocks of quantum computers. Qubits are fast but error-prone, because they can be jostled by something as small as a subatomic particle from events in outer space. As more qubits are packed onto a chip, those errors can add up to make the chip no better than a conventional computer chip. So since the 1990s, scientists have been working on quantum error-correction." #finance #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #financialservices #corporatefinance #google #quantum #quantumcomputing #alphabet https://lnkd.in/d_jRhrqj

"Alphabet's Google, along with TPG Rise Climate and other investors, is backing clean energy developer Intersect Power as part more than $800 million funding round, the company said on Tuesday. Google's capital investment in Intersect Power comes as the tech giant, like other 'hyperscalers' including Microsoft and Meta, races to bolster its domestic data center capacity to meet the AI-driven surge in cloud demand. The company is also partnering with Intersect and TPG Rise Climate to develop industrial parks. These parks will house gigawatts of data center capacity co-located with new clean energy plants. By building data centers next to purpose-built, carbon-free energy sources, Google aims to ease power grid constraints and reduce delivery timelines for both power generation and data center projects." #alphabet #google #datacenters #ai #finance #financialservices #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #corporatefinance https://lnkd.in/eCk_qK6y

"Nikola Corp., a producer of battery and hydrogen-electric trucks, has taken several steps to repay its debts and raise equity, including offering up to $100 million in a common stock sale. The beleaguered company is still dealing with the aftershocks of its founder, Trevor Milton, being convicted of fraud for making exaggerated claims about the company’s electric truck technology. Milton is currently on bail while he appeals his conviction of a four-year prison sentence and must pay Nikola a penalty of $167.7 million. The drama has damaged the company’s reputation, which has led to a loss of investor confidence, financial troubles, and increased scrutiny of its operations. Nikola produced and shipped 203 trucks to date this year, a record for the company, but it did so at a $481 million net loss. The truck maker has set a goal to sell 300 to 350 of its FCEV hydrogen-electric semi trucks by the end of 2024. Nikola’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission Monday show a company that is trying to strengthen its financial position, but in doing so will likely dilute existing shareholders. Nikola intends to use the proceeds from the $100 million sale for working capital and general corporate purposes. Nikola noted that it will invest most of the proceeds in short- and medium-term financial instruments, but may also use some of the cash to 'acquire or invest in a complementary business, assets or technologies." #finance #equipmentfinance #equipmentleasing #financialservices #corporatefinance #automotive #evs #nikola https://lnkd.in/gGUSW5nA