ZURICH, Switzerland, Dec 8, 2025 – ABB has invested in OctaiPipe through ABB Motion Ventures and will take a minority stake in the company. The partnership aims to give data center operators tools that support AI-based tools for data center energy and cooling management.
With global demand for data center capacity expected to rise at an annual rate of between 19 and 22% from 2023 to 2030, energy use is surging – cooling alone accounts for up to 40% of a facility’s electricity consumption. ABB’s investment in OctaiPipe supports an on-premise AI solution that can reduce cooling energy use by up to 30%. The software offers short payback periods and installs without new hardware for data center operators.
Data centers represented approx. 1.5% of the world’s electricity consumption in 2024, with the US accounting for 45%. US data center power consumption is projected to drive nearly half of the growth in electricity demand through 2030.
“Data centers are the engines of the digital economy, but their energy footprint is unsustainable without radical innovation,” said Eric Topham, CEO and co-founder of OctaiPipe. “Think of our federated learning1 platform as an orchestra conductor, smartly adjusting the performance of the cooling system based on what’s actually needed. In this way, our AI-driven software solution delivers secure, compliant, and actionable optimization. By joining forces with ABB, we’re not just scaling technology. We’re enabling data center operators to future-proof their infrastructure and thrive in a rapidly evolving market.”
“Energy efficiency is key to ensuring industries can outrun, leaner and cleaner. It’s a must, not a plus,” concluded Ankush Gulati, energy efficiency program lead, ABB Motion Services. “By integrating OctaiPipe’s cutting-edge AI we are broadening our proven offering with advanced software capabilities, enabling data centers to optimize energy use in their cooling infrastructure. With the US economy predicted to consume more electricity in 2030 for processing data than for manufacturing all energy-intensive goods combined, the opportunity for impact is significant.”
The OctaiPipe solution uses federated AI, multi-agent reinforcement learning2 and digital twins to adjust cooling setpoints while maintaining safety and regulatory compliance. Its on-premise design supports operators that need scalable controls without relying on cloud hosting. The approach gives data centers clear paths to increase reliability and optimize performance.
[1] Federated learning is a machine learning paradigm that facilitates the training of AI models across a network of decentralized devices (or servers). This approach allows each node to contribute to the model’s learning process using its local data without the need to exchange or centralize these data samples.
[2] Reinforcement Learning is a form of AI that learns through being given an objective with constraints. Reinforcement Learning dynamically learns by adjusting actions based on continuous feedback to maximize a reward, improving performance over time.
Source: ABB
About ABB Motion Services
ABB Motion Services is the service unit of ABB Group that supports motors, drives and generators for industrial customers worldwide. The unit operates more than 50 service workshops and employs over 1,200 certified field service engineers, along with more than 600 service partners, to provide maintenance, condition monitoring and lifecycle-management services. Its customers work in heavy industry, manufacturing, oil and gas, marine, power generation and infrastructure across more than 60 countries. The unit helps organizations extend equipment life, reduce downtime and improve energy use through repair, retrofit and digital monitoring services.
About OctaiPipe
OctaiPipe is a UK-based company that provides AI software for managing energy and cooling in data centers. Its platform uses federated and edge AI to control heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and power systems for data center operators. These tools help reduce energy use and support sustainability and compliance needs. OctaiPipe serves data center operators, hosting providers and infrastructure companies in several global regions. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in London, UK. OctaiPipe has about 24 employees. Its software provides site-specific recommendations, real-time cooling adjustments, energy-use reports and on-site deployment of privacy-preserving AI models. These capabilities help facility managers understand operating conditions, improve system efficiency and maintain control of sensitive data. OctaiPipe designs its platform to support routine operations, equipment coordination and energy-management planning through automated and data-driven tools.