Trump-branded AI data center megaproject stalls, CEO departs

Why it matters: Fermi America, co-founded by President Trump's former Energy Secretary Rick Perry, is emerging as a high-profile test of whether the biggest, most ambitious AI infrastructure projects can deliver on their promises.

Behind the scenes: In an interview with Axios on Thursday, Neugebarger defended the project while acknowledging some shortcomings. He gave no indication that his departure was imminent.

• Neugebauer told Axios he may have been naive about how complex these projects are to put together, particularly the cooling systems that are essential to cool the AI chips.
• Pushing back on the line of questioning, he said he may have "misunderstood where the supply chain is" for cooling equipment: "I will accept that as a failure."

A request for additional comment to the firm and to Neugebauer directly on Saturday was not successful.

The big picture: The problems facing the company include the lack of a publicly confirmed anchor tenant — typically a hyperscaler — which is widely seen as essential to move forward, including on components like the cooling system.

• These hurdles are documented in an independent report by Cleanview shared exclusively with Axios, as well as earnings calls, public filings and comments from company executives. Cleanview is a market intelligence firm that tracks clean energy and data centers.

Friction point: Neugebauer acknowledged to Axios that the project can't move forward without a tenant, though he also said the issue of tenants — or the lack of them — "isn't a problem" for the company.

• On Fermi's March 30 earnings call, analysts pressed executives about the lack of publicly disclosed tenants. Neugebauer responded that the company is signing new letters of intent, but that he couldn't share details publicly until things are finalized.
• A tenant pulled out in December and investors filed a class-action lawsuit tied to that.

Catch up fast: The project, in the Texas Panhandle, came together rapidly. It was unveiled in June 2025, and the company went public a few months later.

• Also known as Project Matador, the campus is set to be called the President Donald Trump Advanced Energy and Intelligence Campus.
• The company has cleared some key hurdles, including securing an air permit earlier this year.

Stunning stat: The world's largest proposal to date, it spans a space that's half the size of Manhattan and will have three times the power demand of New York City, Neugebauer said at a Semafor event last week.

• It's pitched as producing 17 gigawatts of largely on-site power including natural gas, nuclear power and solar.

How it works: Neugebauer cited holdups in confirming cooling systems, which are typically designed by tenants and must be finalized before construction can proceed.

• "I think it's a bigger bottleneck than we originally anticipated," Neugebauer said on the earnings call.

Fermi's blockbuster IPO last fall underscored the market's enthusiasm for gargantuan AI-era infrastructure. The dismal stock performance since then is a sharp contrast to the broader rally in AI-related energy stocks.

The Cleanview report estimates that even if Fermi secured an anchor tenant this month and matched other similarly large data center construction timelines, its first buildings wouldn't come online until May 2027 — about a year later than initially projected.

• The company had previously aimed to bring roughly 1.1 gigawatts online by the end of 2026, but has since disclosed in a recent SEC filing that it no longer expects to meet that target.
• The report relies largely on publicly available information, though the satellite images were commissioned by the firm.

Zoom in: Those images suggest limited visible progress at the site in recent months, compared to other large-scale projects.

• CFO Miles Everson said on the March earnings call that additional construction would not move forward until a definitive tenant agreement and project financing are in place.

Follow the money: Fellow co-founder Griffin Perry — the son of Rick Perry — reduced his stake by roughly 11 million shares, about a 15% cut, according to an April 15 SEC filing.

• Energy writer Robert Bryce pointed to that sale and struggles in a Substack post last week.
• "Given these facts, it may not be surprising that some Fermi insiders, including one of the company's founders, are selling significant amounts of their stock," wrote Bryce, who also said a few other company executives sold far fewer shares compared to Perry.
• Perry couldn't be immediately reached for comment when messaged on LinkedIn. Axios couldn't confirm why he sold his stock or whether other company insiders sold shares.

Meanwhile: Politico reported in March that Neugebauer clashed with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick at a conference, writing that the confrontation "hints at trouble" for the project.

What we're watching: Fermi may prove to be a high-profile outlier, or it may signal broader challenges with the AI boom and the unprecedented scale of the projects that underpin it.