New 'Data Center Excellence' Standard From Telecom Trade Group
In the AI race with China, data centers need quality standards for a streamlined process, the trade groups said.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 5, 2026 – The Telecommunications Industry Association is creating a new “Data Center Excellence” quality standard, backed by hyperscalers including Google, focused on driving critical technology and infrastructure, TIA CEO David Stehlin, said here Thursday.
TIA’s most recent work has been centered around setting minimum quality requirements for key data center components, especially with the expansion of artificial intelligence data centers, Stehlin said at the INCOMPAS Policy Summit.
“In my day, it was the Cold War. It was mutually assured destruction, if you remember that term, with thousands of nuclear weapons being built up around the world,” said INCOMPAS CEO Chip Pickering.
