“The world has entered the age of electricity,” as the International Energy Agency’s Fatih Birol recently stated, and that shows up clearly in the enormous amounts of power now used by modern data centers. Consequently, spending on technology and AI‑driven infrastructure is tracking to climb above 2% of global GDP, topping past build‑outs like interstate highways and early broadband networks.
Applied Digital is right in the middle of this “electrified” AI build‑out. The company just signed a 15‑year, multi‑billion‑dollar lease with an investment‑grade U.S. hyperscaler for its new Polaris Forge 3 campus, adding another big, take‑or‑pay deal. After that news, Needham raised its price target on Applied Digital Corporation (APLD) to $66 from $51, seeing Polaris Forge 3 as a real boost to the company’s long‑term earning power.
