Billionaire Data Center Builder Insists There’s No AI Bubble

Ona bright August morning, Bob Clark, the founder of construction giant Clayco, stops by the new $850 million, 19-acre Obama Presidential Center, which he helped build, in Jackson Park on the South Side of Chicago. After a quick checkup on the “Obamalisk,” as he fondly calls the complex’s central eight-story spire of granite, glass and concrete, he gives a speedy hello to former White House senior advisor Valerie Jarrett, who is now CEO of the Obama Foundation. Then he’s off, hopping in the back of a white Escalade and speeding down Lake Shore Drive to another of his projects, which could arguably be of even greater importance to Chicago and the world. Situated on a 440-acre Lake Michigan site that used to be a U.S. Steel factory, “Quantum Shore” will be one of the lar­gest quantum computing campuses in the country when it opens at the end of 2027. Tenants include IBM and Palo Alto, Cali­fornia–based PsiQuantum, which plans to build a million-qubit quantum computer here. Such a machine would be unimaginably powerful, able to crack the usual types of encryption that keep most of the world’s computers (and bank accounts) secure. It could even someday speed up AI learning by dramatically reducing training time for certain complex deep-learning architectures. Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2026/09/30/billionaire-data-center-builder-insists-theres-no-ai-bubble/ Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1 Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more: https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes: http://forbes.com Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.