ALPS, an Italian scale-up founded in Trentino in 2018 and operating across four continents, has appointed Brian Turnbow as Technical Director for AI, a newly created role leading the company's technical expansion into artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC).

TRENTO, Italy, Oct. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The appointment puts the company's expertise in designing, building, and operating data centers integrated with energy systems to work in AI and HPC, through an energy-to-compute approach that aims to harness renewable energy sources and reuse existing assets to develop more sustainable compute infrastructure.

Power access is the gating factor

Access to power is one of the main constraints on AI infrastructure development. According to data from Terna, Italy's electricity transmission system operator, as of 31 August 2026, data center grid connection requests in Italy totaled more than 100 GW, up from around 30 GW at the end of 2024 — a rise that makes site selection and grid connection lead times critical.

ALPS's energy-to-compute approach is based on a deliberate choice: locating data centers where energy is already available, including outside major hubs, to reduce reliance on congested areas of the grid. The company aims to integrate renewable energy sources and redevelop disused industrial sites, reusing existing grid connections, buildings, and other assets wherever technically feasible. The goal is to develop more sustainable compute infrastructure that makes use of local resources and, through asset reuse, limits land take and reduces the need for new construction. The expansion complements ALPS's ongoing mining operations, which continue in line with its business plan.

AI/HPC strategy, with Italy as a priority market

Turnbow will lead ALPS's AI/HPC technical strategy, from assessing architectures and sites to engaging with technology and industrial partners. Italy will be a priority market: ALPS intends to bring its international expertise back to Italy and work with Italian engineering and industrial companies, drawing on their expertise in projects abroad as well. The announcement did not specify project sites or timelines, which will be key details to watch as the strategy develops.

"Italy and Europe have energy resources, industrial assets and technical expertise we can harness," said Francesco Buffa, CEO and co-founder of ALPS. "Through our energy-to-compute approach, we want to turn the energy and industrial potential of the regions in which we operate into a competitive advantage and help narrow Europe's AI gap."

More than 25 years in telecom and digital infrastructure

Turnbow brings over 25 years of experience in telecommunications and digital infrastructure to the role, having held technical positions at TWT, Unidata, and CDLAN. He serves on the board of ITNOG, the Italian Network Operators' Group.

"AI infrastructure starts well before GPU deployment," said Turnbow. "Every project must start with the workloads it needs to support and clients' requirements, not just the available power. My goal is to translate these requirements into coherent design decisions, building flexible, scalable and sustainable computing capacity while making use of renewable energy sources and existing assets."

About ALPS

ALPS designs, builds, and operates data centers for energy- and compute-intensive applications, combining energy expertise with data center engineering and operations. Its international growth has been supported by Azimut through a €40 million transaction in 2023 and a €105 million club deal in 2024 — a financing structure in which a small group of investors provides the capital directly.

More information is available on the company's official website: www.alps.it

SOURCE ALPS