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Eaton expands AI data center stack from grid to chip

Ninelu Tu
, Taipei

Sep 7, 2026, 07:44

0

Credit: DIGITIMES

As AI data centers scale rapidly, Eaton is expanding beyond traditional power management into modular power deployment, next-generation DC conversion and liquid cooling, positioning itself to address infrastructure requirements from the electrical grid to AI chips.

Eaton, a global intelligent power management company headquartered in Ireland with major operations in the US, is broadening its uninterruptible power supply (UPS), power distribution and circuit protection portfolio through acquisitions, while adding technologies aimed at accelerating data center deployment, improving energy-conversion efficiency and managing rising thermal loads.
In Taiwan, Eaton is also strengthening manufacturing, validation and service capacity to meet fast-changing demand from semiconductor and AI data center customers.
Tony Lin, general manager of Eaton Taiwan and the Philippines, said AI computing continues to drive up data center electricity consumption. Competition in the sector, he said, is increasingly about not only scaling computing power, but also converting every watt into compute as efficiently and reliably as possible.
Power management becomes core to AI infrastructure
Eaton's changing revenue mix reflects the growing importance of its electrical business. Its share of group revenue has increased from less than 60% to about 70% over the past decade-plus. Group revenue reached about US$27 billion in 2025, up approximately 10% year-over-year, supported by stronger demand for power infrastructure as AI and digital applications expand.
To strengthen its AI data center solutions, Eaton completed three acquisitions in 2025: FibreBond, Resilient Power and Boyd. The known transaction value totals at least US$10.9 billion, including US$1.4 billion for FibreBond and US$9.5 billion for Boyd.
The deals address three increasingly important areas: modular power deployment, medium-voltage solid-state transformers (MV SSTs) and liquid-cooling thermal management. Together, they illustrate Eaton's effort to move beyond its traditional role as a UPS and power distribution supplier and become a broader infrastructure provider focused on data center deployment speed, power efficiency and high-density cooling.
Modular power targets faster data center deployment
Lin said FibreBond primarily adds prefabricated, modular power solutions to Eaton's portfolio. As operators seek to shorten the construction and delivery cycles of large AI data centers, integrating power equipment in factories before deployment can reduce on-site construction complexity and provide greater flexibility for phased expansion.
For Eaton, the acquisition strengthens its ability to design, build and deliver front-end power systems for data centers while addressing the growing need for faster infrastructure deployment.
Resilient Power, meanwhile, strengthens Eaton's position in medium-voltage solid-state transformer (MV SST) technology. Lin said rising AI rack power density is putting pressure on conventional architectures that supply IT equipment through multiple AC conversion stages, creating challenges in efficiency, footprint and distribution complexity.
800VDC points to next power architecture
As AI data center power architectures evolve beyond today's 48V systems toward 800 volts direct current (VDC), a single AI rack could eventually require more than 300kW. Eaton's proposed MV SST can convert medium-voltage power ranging from 10kV to 34.5kV directly to 800VDC, reducing conversion stages in the traditional power chain and potentially improving overall power-use efficiency.
According to Eaton, the MV SST can achieve overall power-conversion efficiency of 98.5%. The company said it was scheduled to obtain TÜV SÜD Mark certification in August 2026 after testing under IEC 62477-2. Eaton also said the system has been operating for more than a year at a site operated by a major Asian internet company.
However, 800VDC remains at an early stage of AI data center power evolution. Adoption will depend on server platforms, rack architectures, standards and the pace at which operators deploy the technology. Strategically, Resilient Power gives Eaton a foundation for entering next-generation DC power architectures from the medium-voltage side.
Boyd adds liquid cooling to Eaton portfolio
Boyd, acquired for US$9.5 billion, is another key component of Eaton's strategy to expand its AI data center capabilities. Founded in 1928, Boyd has long specialized in thermal management and engineered materials. Its thermal management business now operates as Boyd Thermal by Eaton.
Lin said the increasing heat generated by GPUs, CPUs and high-speed switching chips has transformed cooling from a supporting function into a fundamental constraint on AI infrastructure. Thermal management now directly affects deployable server density, system reliability, energy efficiency and future expansion flexibility.
Boyd Thermal provides cooling solutions spanning cold plates, liquid distribution manifolds and rack-level liquid-cooling architectures. Its cold plates can directly cool GPUs, CPUs and high-speed switching chips, while its Inner Manifold and Rack Manifold structures support high-density, fully liquid-cooled racks.
Eaton said the solutions can support Nvidia Vera Rubin NVL72 and GB300 NVL72 architectures and meet requirements for the NVIDIA MGX platform. With Boyd Thermal, Eaton's portfolio extends beyond medium-voltage equipment, power distribution, UPS and energy storage systems in the data center "Green Area" into rack-level power and server liquid cooling in the "White Space."
Taiwan investment strengthens local supply chain
Eaton is also increasing its investment in Taiwan. Lin said the company's capital expenditure in Taiwan for 2025-2026 has exceeded NT$200 million (approx. US$6.3 million), primarily for capacity expansion, manufacturing upgrades and testing equipment.
Over the next four years, Eaton plans to invest another NT$300 million to strengthen product supply, technical operations and local services. The company expects the investment to increase overall capacity by about 40% compared with 2025.
The Taiwan factory also serves customers in Europe and Asia, making it an important part of Eaton's global supply chain.
For semiconductor and data center customers, Lin stressed that local manufacturing is about more than reducing shipping distances and lead times. It also enables closer communication among customers, local service teams and factories when design changes, manufacturing issues or validation requirements arise, helping accelerate problem resolution.
Eaton eyes deeper role in Taiwan AI ecosystem
Taiwan's comprehensive semiconductor supply chain, spanning precision manufacturing, packaging and testing, gives Eaton an opportunity to deepen its role in the region's AI infrastructure ecosystem.
The company plans to continue expanding its local workforce to support technical and after-sales services, while leveraging Taiwan's manufacturing and R&D capabilities to help customers address the increasingly demanding power and cooling requirements of next-generation AI infrastructure.

Article
translated by Willis Ke and edited by Jack Wu

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