Data Center Cooling Startup Omen AI Acquires Rival Aquatic Labs for $16 Million
Omen AI buys Aquatic Labs to combine water monitoring technologies, targeting reduced downtime costs for large-scale AI infrastructure.
US-based AI infrastructure startup Omen AI has announced the acquisition of competitor Aquatic Labs in a $16 million cash-and-stock deal. Both companies were developing real-time sensors to monitor data center cooling systems, aiming to replace slow, multi-day laboratory sample analyses with automated detection.
The merger combines complementary technologies into a single sensor: Omen’s system detects specific elements in the water, while Aquatic Labs’ technology tests for alkalinity. Allan Adams, CEO of Aquatic Labs and formerly an MIT professor and researcher at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, stated that this integration provides a “much richer picture” of fluid conditions. Adams will serve as Chief Science Officer of the combined entity.
For large data center operators, cooling system failures often necessitate dumping entire water systems and halting operations, resulting in significant financial losses. Real-time monitoring allows operators to extend the lifespan of cooling fluids and minimize cleanup costs. Omen founder Zach Laberge noted that initial sensors would monitor chip clusters pulling 250 to 300 MW of power by year-end, valued at approximately $5 to $7 billion, with plans to cover the equivalent of 1 GW of chips by the end of 2027.