Blackstone’s AI titan marches on without its $3b founder

In a major leadership shake-up making waves across the tech industry, Blackstone has removed QTS Realty Trust founder and CEO Chad Williams, just as the company rises as a major force in the global AI boom.

Since Blackstone’s $10 billion acquisition last year, QTS has become North America’s largest data center landlord and a key infrastructure pillar powering artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and US. national security.

Under Blackstone’s ownership, QTS’s development pipeline has grown from $1 billion to $25 billion, and its commissioned power capacity has ballooned to over 3 gigawatts — or enough to meet the needs of more than 2 million homes.

But even as it grew massively, not all was well behind the scenes. QTS employees were surprised when Williams suddenly announced he was leaving. His departure capped a two-decade run during which he grew QTS from a small operator in Kansas into a $60 billion colossus.

Insiders say the move wasn’t entirely voluntary. At the time, board members had already discussed an incentive package to stay through 2031 with Williams. Instead, a leadership transition was shoved into place, and he was quietly bought out in a $3 billion deal.

Williams battles Blackstone over growth strategy

Chad Williams contributed a different vision to QTS. A proudly religious and principled man, he had grown the company brick by brick. Office meetings routinely began with prayer, and ministers blessed data centers. He prioritized hiring veterans and was known to say that QTS’s most valuable asset was its people.

He was an opportunist as well. At one point, Williams bought a bankrupt manufacturing plant in Northern Virginia for $12 million — a bet that the property is now a multi-billion-dollar data hub. His AI boom strategy — to bank land and establish power access early — paid off in spades.

But as QTS expanded, there was friction. Williams’ measured, relationship-based approach started to chafe against Blackstone’s size-driven, quick-turn model. That tension between the two men grew as Blackstone sought faster global expansion, especially in Europe. Williams pushed back, concerned about overextending and operational risk. The negotiations eventually reached a compromise, and QTS started building out in Europe, but the friction remained.

Another area of strife arose in 2023 when Blackstone unveiled a joint venture with Digital Realty Trust, a competitor of QTS.

He fought back, arguing that QTS was entitled to a bigger upside. Eventually, Blackstone did a deal in which its institutional platform bought the properties.

Those moments revealed a deep disconnect between how Williams founded QTS in long-term, human-centered values. Blackstone, which aimed to maximize returns for various constituencies, was playing a different game.

New chiefs guide QTS through changing AI landscape

Today, QTS is led by its co-CEOs, David Robey and Tag Greason, both long-time executives who came with Blackstone’s seal of approval. Robey, a former chief operating officer, had even considered retirement months before he was elevated.

A former West Point grad and Virginia lawmaker, Greason already had a reputation for keen strategic thinking and strong client relationships, particularly with powerhouses such as Microsoft.

QTS is now under new management and reoriented towards hacking away bureaucratic red tape, speeding the pace of project rollouts, and addressing an increasingly uncertain AI market. Demand for AI infrastructure is through the roof. Still, hyperscalers like Microsoft and Amazon are pumping the brakes on new deployments due to concerns around the power grid and escalating construction costs in some geographies.

The new two-person team at the top has a point: QTS will not just be chasing growth, but solid strategic growth. Internally, QTS has reevaluated mergers and acquisitions, and at one point, considered moves to help consolidate the company’s market position via acquiring rivals.

Figuratively, QTS has also outgrown its founder’s time. It has started retiring the eagle-emblazoned branding all over its campuses that Williams personally trademarked.

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