Willis Responds to Explosive Data Center Growth by Redefining How Risk is Managed
NEW YORK, Jan. 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Willis, a WTW business (NASDAQ:WTW), today unveiled a new, forward-looking model for comprehensive data center risk management, responding to the growing recognition that data centers are no longer standalone assets but critical, interconnected digital infrastructure underpinning global technology strategies, AI adoption and economic growth.
Drawing on its work with five of the 10 largest global owners and developers, and many of the top data center construction companies, Willis is responding to a fundamental shift in the sector's risk profile – one that is increasingly systemic, interconnected, and difficult to address through traditional insurance solutions alone.
As global demand for data center capacity is fueled by the AI boom, risk exposure has expanded well beyond insurable assets alone. While the sector is expected to generate an estimated $10 billion in projected insurance premiums this year, operators face a widening array of interconnected challenges, including climate volatility, power and water constraints, cyber threats, geopolitics, supply-chain disruption, and operational resilience.
"Willis operates with a deep belief in strength through specialty," said George Haitsch, North America Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) Industry Leader at Willis. "Data centers have become a critical part of the global supply chain, and with that evolution, they face a growing list of complex and integrated risks. A ‘one-size-fits-all' approach is no longer a viable option. Our industry must switch from singular products to customizable frameworks that embed risk mitigation from the earliest stages of development—and that is exactly what Willis is doing."
An Integrated, Risk Cycle View of Data Center Risk
In response, Willis has developed an integrated eight-point digital infrastructure risk framework designed to address the full spectrum of risks facing data center owners, operators, and investors across the entire lifecycle of a project—from development and construction through steady-state operations. The framework takes a holistic view of both current and emerging risks, including those that are systemic, difficult to model, or still evolving.
The new eight-point framework will:
- Reduce operational disruption: Protect physical assets and ensure business continuity by addressing loss and damage from theft, natural disasters, power outages, and equipment failures.
- Optimize balance sheet protection: Mitigate financial risks that impact operations and reputation, including loss of revenue, scheduling delays, private equity and M&A exposure, insurance gaps, and investor perception leveraging Willis' industry leading analytics.
- Drive sustainable growth and strengthen corporate resilience: Mitigate climate, environmental and third-party liability risks including environmental, construction, and energy liability exposures including nuclear liability location-based exposures, and chronic weather-related threats.
- Safeguard client trust and reputation with robust cyber and data risk management: Address vulnerabilities such as data privacy liability, system failures, insider threats, and advanced cyberattacks like ransomware and malware.
- Strengthen corporate integrity and global growth: Proactively manage compliance and legal risks as well as overcome licensing challenges, cross-border as well as multinational exposures, audit failures, and regulatory risk.
- Boost operational resilience, cost efficiency and competitive advantage: Protect against loss or damage to physical machinery, hardware shortages, credit risks, and third-party failures through enhanced supply chain risk management.
- Enable smooth business transformation and strengthen organization resilience by managing operational risk: Address the challenges tied to major transitions, human errors, workforce challenges, lack of redundancy, or poor change management.
- Strengthen long-term competitiveness and resilience by proactively managing emerging and strategic risks: Mitigate systemic vulnerabilities that could trigger cascading global impacts, while addressing risks tied to geopolitics, AI-driven demand, technological innovation, as well as evolving insurability and policy exclusions.
"Data centers sit at the heart of the modern economy," said Bill Creedon, Chairman of Willis Global Construction. "From the construction phase through to long-term operations, we're working with some of the world's largest data center developers, owners, contractors and hyperscalers, and seeing firsthand how the sector's unprecedented pace of growth is making risk more systemic, more interconnected and more material. These exposures extend well beyond the technology sector and demand a fundamentally different approach—one that looks across the entire data center lifecycle, not simply the placement of insurance capacity."
Addressing the Energy Challenge
Among the most critical and complex risks facing data centers today is energy security. As power demand intensifies and grids come under increasing strain, ensuring access to reliable, continuous, and resilient energy sources has become a defining challenge for the sector.
With its commitment to industry specialization, Willis brings a deep bench of energy specialists to this challenge, with expertise spanning traditional and alternative energy sources as well as nuclear energy, including advising on the potential use of Small Modular Reactors for data center power supply. Working in close collaboration with Willis' construction, natural resources, other related industry and broking specialties, and risk analytics, Willis provides clients with nuclear power insights during both the initial construction and operational phase.
Tailored Digital Infrastructure Solutions
Building on its advisory and analytics capabilities, Willis is developing dedicated digital infrastructure solutions designed to deliver seamless continuity of coverage from construction through steady-state operations. These solutions are tailored to each client's individual needs, moving beyond a one-size-fits-all model to address unique risk profiles, operating environments, and regional considerations. Willis also plans to add new hires in support of the additional growth expected in this sector.
Structured to deliver billions in tailored solutions based on actual exposure and cover multi-year terms tailored to builder's risk, property, and marine, the solutions align stable capital with long-term infrastructure risk, while incorporating disciplined risk retention to ensure alignment across clients, carriers and capital providers. To date, Willis has secured over $3 billion in capacity for significant global hyperscale data center development projects. Additional capacity for insurers is available after a thorough risk analysis.
About WTW
At WTW (NASDAQ:WTW), we provide data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people, risk, and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our colleagues serving 140 countries and markets, we help organizations sharpen their strategy, enhance organizational resilience, motivate their workforce, and maximize performance.
Working shoulder to shoulder with our clients, we uncover opportunities for sustainable success—and provide perspective that moves you.
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