Services
Compute Infrastructure Advisory from an Operator Who Runs the Asset Class
SproutVest advises on data center and AI compute projects in the 1 to 50 MW range: site selection and feasibility, power procurement strategy, interconnection and utility diligence, owner's representation, and buy-side technical due diligence. The judgment comes from operating a facility, not from brokering one.
30-min call · No commitment · Or send the project brief confidentially →
What we do
Fixed-fee, defined-deliverable engagements scoped before they start. These are project engagements on a separate track from our embedded fractional practice, so the two to three client cap on that practice does not apply here. Every deliverable is written to be forwarded to a credit committee, a county commission, or a board.
- Site selection and feasibility studies, with the power math shown rather than asserted.
- Power procurement strategy across utility, cooperative, municipal, and behind-the-meter paths.
- Interconnection and utility diligence: queue position, tariff exposure, cost allocation, and realistic timelines.
- Owner's representation through design, procurement, and construction for owners who are not data center specialists.
- Buy-side technical due diligence on compute deals, powered land, PPAs, and colocation agreements.
Who this is for
Operators and neoclouds entering territory where the utility relationships and permitting terrain are unfamiliar. Family offices, funds, and regional lenders underwriting compute infrastructure without a technical bench in-house. Economic development organizations that need independent technical capacity on their side of the table when a data center operator sits on the other.
Why an operator, not a broker
Most of the advice available in this market is conflicted. Brokers are paid when land moves, utilities advise toward their own load growth, and national site selection firms are scoped and priced for hyperscale campuses. A 5 or 20 MW project gets the leftovers of all three. What that project actually needs is an independent read on whether the power is real, what the interconnection will truly cost and when it will truly energize, and whether the deal survives comparison against simply renting the compute.
SproutVest brings that read from the operator's side of the table. Through Chainlodge, which wound down in 2026, we operated a hydro-powered data center facility running at 1 MW with a mapped utility path to 5 MW, which means we have personally carried a site through the siting, power, and repositioning decisions our clients face. The commercial judgment comes from fifteen-plus years of product and market development at Google, Microsoft, and venture-backed startups, and the economics framework is published openly in Field Notes No. 1: Build, Buy, or Rent. The practice works across North American markets, with particular depth in hydro-powered Pacific Northwest sites and the emerging Gulf South compute corridor.
What we are not
We are not an engineering-procurement-construction firm, a law firm, or a land broker, and we do not pretend to be. We scope around those disciplines and work alongside the ones you hire. Hyperscale campus work sits outside our band, and we will say so on the call rather than stretch to take it.
Frequently asked questions
What size projects is this built for?
Projects in the 1 to 50 MW range. Hyperscale campuses have national advisory firms built and priced for them; the second wave of operators, investors, and communities entering the market does not. That gap is the practice.
Who uses this service?
Operators and neoclouds entering unfamiliar territory, family offices and regional lenders underwriting compute deals without a technical bench, and economic development organizations negotiating with data center operators.
What does a site feasibility study cover?
Utility posture and realistic power availability, the interconnection pathway and its actual timeline, incentive eligibility, site constraints, and a cost model tested against build, buy, and rent alternatives.
Do you take development positions?
Advisory fees are flat and independent of the deal outcome. SproutVest separately develops sites of its own; any overlap with a prospective engagement is disclosed before work begins, and we do not advise on transactions where we hold a position.
Do you sign NDAs?
Yes, mutual NDA before any material is shared.
Have a site, a deal, or a negotiation on the table?
Bring the timeline and the power question; we will tell you on the call whether an independent read is possible in your window.
Start with the economics: Build, Buy, or Rent: An Operator's Guide to AI Compute Decisions →