Pranav Hotkar
New York, United States - March 9, 2026 - KKR is exploring a potential multibillion-dollar sale of data center liquid-cooling provider CoolIT Systems, as surging demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure boosts valuations across the digital infrastructure supply chain.
According to media reports citing people familiar with the matter, the private equity firm has begun evaluating strategic options for the Canada-based company, including a potential sale that could value the business at more than USD 3 billion.
Advisers have reportedly been engaged to assess interest from potential buyers, though the process remains at an early stage and may not necessarily result in a transaction.
CoolIT Systems, founded in 2001 and headquartered in Calgary, develops advanced liquid-cooling technologies used in high-performance computing environments and hyperscale data centers. The company specializes in direct liquid cooling solutions designed to manage the extreme heat generated by dense server clusters and AI accelerators.
Originally focused on cooling solutions for gaming PCs, CoolIT has shifted its strategy over the past decade toward enterprise and data center markets as demand for high-density computing infrastructure has increased. Its technologies are now widely used in environments where traditional air-cooling systems struggle to maintain thermal efficiency.
KKR acquired a majority stake in the company in 2023 at an estimated valuation of roughly USD 270 million. Sovereign wealth investor Mubadala Investment Company also holds a minority stake in the business.
If the company were sold at a valuation exceeding USD 3 billion, it would represent a substantial increase in value since KKR’s investment.
Representatives for both KKR and CoolIT Systems have declined to comment on the reported sale process.
The potential transaction reflects a broader surge of investor interest in companies that provide infrastructure technologies for AI-driven data centers. As hyperscale cloud providers and technology companies rapidly deploy large-scale computing clusters, the need for advanced thermal management systems has intensified.
Modern AI servers equipped with graphics processing units and specialized accelerators consume significantly more power and produce greater heat than traditional enterprise hardware. Liquid cooling systems are increasingly being adopted as a more efficient method of maintaining stable operating temperatures in high-density environments.
This shift has led to rising valuations for companies involved in data center cooling, power management, and other critical infrastructure technologies that support next-generation computing workloads.
Industry analysts say the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure is transforming the broader data center supply chain, creating new opportunities for specialized technology providers that can address the performance and energy challenges associated with large-scale AI deployments.
