Trane to Acquire LiquidStack for AI Data Centre Cooling

Trane Technologies has agreed to acquire LiquidStack, a specialist in liquid cooling for data centres, in a move aimed at strengthening its position as a full service thermal management partner for next-generation facilities. 

The deal reflects growing demand for advanced cooling architectures as AI workloads drive higher rack densities and more variable power profiles.

The acquisition builds on Trane Technologies’ minority investment in LiquidStack in 2023 and brings direct-to-chip and immersion cooling into Trane’s data centre portfolio. 

LiquidStack, headquartered in Carrollton, Texas, develops liquid cooling systems designed for generative AI and hyperscale computing environments where traditional air cooling is no longer sufficient.

Addressing rising thermal demands

AI-driven compute has fundamentally altered the thermal profile of modern data centres. Higher chip-level power densities, coupled with fluctuating workloads, are forcing operators to rethink cooling strategies across the entire facility, from central plant design through to on-chip heat removal.

LiquidStack’s technology is used by data centres and high performance compute organisations that require high-density liquid cooling to improve efficiency, sustainability and performance. 

By integrating these capabilities, Trane Technologies aims to offer a more comprehensive cooling stack covering chillers, heat rejection, controls, liquid distribution and on-chip cooling.

“Rising chip-level power and heat densities combined with increasingly variable workloads are redefining thermal management requirements inside modern data centres,” says Holly Paeper, President, Commercial HVAC Americas at Trane Technologies. 

“Customers need integrated cooling solutions that scale from the central plant to the chip and can adapt as performance demands continue to evolve. LiquidStack’s direct-to-chip and immersion cooling capabilities and talent, combined with Trane’s systems expertise and global footprint, strengthen our ability to deliver end-to-end, future-ready thermal management across the entire data centre ecosystem.”

Holly emphasises that the ability to integrate liquid cooling into existing and new facilities is becoming a critical differentiator as AI deployments scale.

Scaling liquid cooling globally

The transaction includes LiquidStack’s global team and its manufacturing, engineering and R&D operations in Texas and Hong Kong. Once the deal closes, LiquidStack will operate globally within the Commercial HVAC business unit of the Trane Technologies Americas segment.

This structure is intended to accelerate the global availability of liquid cooling solutions while maintaining the specialist expertise required to deploy them effectively. Trane’s global footprint and service capabilities are expected to help scale LiquidStack’s technology across multiple regions and customer types.

Liquid cooling adoption has been uneven across markets, often limited by supply chains, integration complexity and operational familiarity. Trane’s involvement is positioned as a way to reduce these barriers by embedding liquid cooling within a broader, well established HVAC and thermal management platform.

Leadership continuity and growth

LiquidStack Co-Founder and CEO Joe Capes will join Trane Technologies in a leadership role and continue to lead the LiquidStack business. Maintaining continuity at the leadership level is intended to preserve the company’s innovation focus while enabling faster growth under Trane’s ownership.

“LiquidStack has been on a mission to innovate and deliver the most advanced, powerful and sustainable liquid cooling solutions,” says Joe. 

“Joining Trane Technologies enables us to accelerate that mission with the resources, scale and global reach needed to power next-generation AI workloads in the most demanding compute environments. We are very excited to expand our impact and continue our growth as part of Trane Technologies.”

Joe notes that access to Trane’s engineering depth and customer base would support broader deployment of liquid cooling in production data centres rather than limited pilot environments.

Strategic context for data centres

The acquisition is described by Trane as a bolt-on addition aligned with its strategy of adding specialist technologies and scaling them across its core businesses. It follows the company’s recently-announced acquisition of Stellar Energy, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026.

The deal highlights how cooling has become a central constraint on AI infrastructure growth. As racks move beyond 50kW and approach or exceed 100kW, liquid cooling is shifting from an emerging option to an operational requirement.

By combining central plant systems with direct-to-chip and immersion cooling, Trane is positioning itself to support data centres through multiple generations of compute. The approach is intended to give operators flexibility as chip architectures evolve and as facilities transition from air based designs to hybrid and fully liquid cooled environments.

The transaction is expected to close in early 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms have not been disclosed.