Canary Media just dropped a story that stopped me in my tracks:
In a first, a data center is using a big battery to get online faster.
Instead of waiting on infrastructure upgrades, new gas turbines, or lobbying utility companies for more power, Aligned Data Centers is taking a different approach. It’s paying for a new 31-megawatt/62-megawatt-hour battery to power its new facility in the Pacific Northwest.
And according to the companies involved, this deal will get Aligned’s data center running ”years earlier than would be possible with traditional utility upgrades.”
This tells us everything we need to know about where we are in the AI infrastructure cycle – and where the next big investment opportunities are hiding.
Every hyperscaler – Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Meta (META) – is pouring tens of billions into new AI data centers. In fact, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang estimates we’ll spend $1 trillion on new AI infrastructure before 2030.
But all those shiny, new data centers need power – lots of it. And our grid is already groaning under the weight of EVs, renewables, and aging transmission lines.
Improving energy infrastructure takes years; sometimes decades.
AI can’t wait. And that’s where batteries enter the picture as the bridge between today’s strained grid and tomorrow’s digital economy.
By installing massive battery packs onsite or nearby, data centers can effectively ‘jump the line,’ securing a reliable buffer of power that lets them come online years ahead of schedule. Plus, since batteries take pressure off the grid, regulators and utilities will greenlight those projects faster.
It’s a brilliant hack – and it’s likely to become standard practice for every hyperscaler racing to deploy AI capacity.
The AI Battery Boom Is Here
Data centers are quickly becoming the largest power consumers in the world.
That’s why the companies solving AI’s energy bottleneck could see growth that rivals the chip boom itself.
Just as Nvidia became the bottleneck supplier for AI compute, the companies that can build and scale utility-grade batteries are positioning themselves as bottleneck suppliers for AI power.
Think about it this way. Every AI data center needs:
- Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) to run their models
- Power to keep the lights on and the regulators happy
It’s the same dynamic; and it creates the same kind of explosive opportunity.
We see three very interesting ways to play it.
Eos Energy: The Zinc Battery Play for AI Data Centers
Most batteries on the grid today are lithium-ion. But lithium-ion has limits: it’s expensive, it degrades quickly when cycled hard, and it’s not optimized for multi-hour storage.
Enter Eos Energy (EOSE).
Eos builds zinc-based batteries that are specifically designed for longer applications, between four and 10 hours. That’s the sweet spot for data centers looking to buffer grid demand and secure overnight uptime. And unlike lithium-ion, zinc doesn’t require nickel, cobalt, or lithium – minerals increasingly caught up in geopolitical snares.
The company has quietly amassed a multi-billion-dollar project pipeline. And if other data centers go the way of Aligned, the AI Boom could pour gasoline on that fire.
Think of Eos as the ‘non-lithium bet’ on AI storage. If hyperscalers start diversifying battery chemistry to reduce risk, Eos is perfectly positioned.
Fluence Energy: The Leading AI Data Center Battery Stock
Now, where Eos is the scrappy upstart, Fluence (FLNC) is the established pure-play leader in grid-scale batteries.
A joint venture between AES (AES) and Siemens, Fluence has already deployed over 7 gigawatts of storage across the globe. It sells not just the hardware but the software to orchestrate storage systems, making it a one-stop shop for data centers and utilities.
If you’re a hyperscaler that needs 200 MW of storage integrated into your new AI campus, Fluence is the first number you call.
Investors have started to notice. Shares have surged nearly 370% since May.
But even still, the runway here is massive. Fluence could be to AI batteries what Nvidia was to AI chips: the name brand everyone trusts.
Tesla’s Megapack: The Hidden AI Infrastructure Powerhouse
Everyone knows Tesla (TSLA) for its cars – and now its humanoid robots. But the company has quietly become one of the world’s largest battery companies.
Tesla’s Megapack business has locked in multi-year, multi-billion-dollar contracts, most notably:
- a 15.3 GWh supply agreement with Intersect Power valued at over $3 billion through 2030
- and a June 2025 order from Clearway Energy for 490 MW/1,356 MWh that industry reports peg at roughly $450 million
With Tesla cranking out record volumes – 12.5 GWh of Megapacks in Q3 2025 alone and over 31 GWh in 2024 – demand is so strong that new orders are getting pushed well into future calendar years. In other words, Tesla’s battery business isn’t just busy… it’s booked solid for years, as utilities and power producers race to lock in capacity before the grid revolution leaves them behind.
And if you think the company won’t target AI data centers directly, think again. The Megapack is already being deployed in California to support data-hungry industries. Plugging it into AI is the next logical step.
Perhaps its greatest advantage? Scale. Tesla already has the factories, supply chains, and brand credibility. If hyperscalers want to go with a big-name partner that can deliver dozens of megawatts at speed, Tesla seems the obvious choice.
This makes it not just an EV stock but a stealth AI infrastructure play hiding in plain sight.
Investing in the Data Center Power Revolution
Aligned’s battery tactic isn’t a one-off curiosity. It’s a preview of the next wave of the AI trade.
First was GPUs. Then energy. Now? Storage.
Every AI data center built over the next decade will almost certainly come with a giant battery project attached. That’s tens – maybe hundreds – of billions in new demand for grid-scale batteries…
Which means the companies building those batteries could ride the same exponential curve Nvidia has over the last five years.
If you believe AI is the future, you need to believe batteries are the enabler. And you need exposure to the stocks that make it happen.
Bottom line: AI isn’t just a compute story anymore. It’s a power story. And in that power story, batteries are the unsung hero.
Today’s headline about data centers building giant batteries to get online faster is tomorrow’s trillion-dollar investment theme.
And remember – energy isn’t the only bottleneck AI is about to break.
The same forces driving a battery boom are propelling the next frontier of automation: humanoid robotics.
And the greatest opportunities in this sector lie with the little-known suppliers making the actuators, sensors, and semiconductors that bring these machines to life.
