Ep. 158 Daniel Lawrence, CEO and Co-Founder at OBM | Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast

https://www.dcsmi.com/newsletter Subscribe to the Data Center Sales and Marketing Newsletter (DCSMI)In episode 158 of the Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast, Joshua Feinberg talks with Dan Lawrence, CEO and co-founder of OBM, about how a small Bitcoin mining side project turned into a global platform for energy flexibility ⚡. You’ll hear how remote management headaches led to an enterprise solution, why the real grid challenge is inflexible loads (not data centers), and how crypto mining and generative AI workloads are converging around shared power, siting, and margin pressures 🤝. Dan explains how co-locating AI factories and Bitcoin miners can smooth load profiles, how behind-the-meter wind projects and ERCOT’s controllable load resources change the energy game, and why the smartest operators now treat energy as a strategy—not just a cost 💡. You’ll also learn about new career paths at the intersection of data centers, power markets, and AI, plus emerging models for heat reuse, community impact, and storytelling with regulators and activists 🌱.Ep. 158 Daniel Lawrence, CEO and Co-Founder of OBM | Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast0:00 Coming up In this episode of the Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast0:54 Introducing Daniel Lawrence, CEO and Co-Founder at OBM1:14 Career Journey from Software Engineer at U.S. Department of Defense to Bitcoin Mining Software Startup 3:44 Remote Management of Small Bitcoin Mining Data Center6:22 First Customer: One of Largest Publicly-Traded Bitcoin Miners (via Consultant Who Saw Reddit Crypto Bitcoin Mining Community Posts)10:04 Convergence of Crypto Mining Entrepreneurs Into Generative AI Entrepreneurs (AI Factories)13:31 Crypto Mining Power Pricing: Self-Hosting vs. Wholesale Data Center Developers vs. Colocation Data Center Operators15:59 Bitcoin Miners Selling Excess Power for GPU AI Workloads15:24 Bitcoin VCs for Capital-Intensive Buildouts ⇒ Crypto Operators That Want Load Flexibility 18:32 OBM Evangelizing Energy Optimization and Load Flexibility Within Bitcoin Mining and Data Center Power Conferences20:46 Bitcoin Mining Behind the Meter, Load Profiles, and Grid Load Flexibility (Example: Wind Farm with ERCOT TX Panhandle)24:41 Subscribe to the Data Center Sales and Marketing Newsletter (DCSMI)25:19 OBM Expansion into AI Factories/GenAI Workloads with Pause-less Energy Curtailment29:08 Comparing Bitcoin Mining Entrepreneur  vs. Data Center Entrepreneur/Investor Demographics32:09 Entry-Level Career Options and the Power Grid Crisis in Crypto, Data Center, and Infrastructure Operator Companies39:20 Biggest Crypto and AI Data Center Energy Optimization Mistakes with Fixed-Cost Mindset (vs. Load Flexibility as Revenue Driver)41:41 Load Flexibility Energy Optimization Parallels with European Data Center Heat Reuse Startups45:07 AI Data Center and Bitcoin/Crypto PR, Messaging, Narrative (And Educating Community Stakeholders on Flexing Grid Loads)48:38 ERCOT Texas Grid Innovation (Batteries, Renewables: Wind and Solar; Weak Transmission System)50:37 The Future of Growing a Flexible Load, Energy Management Software Business for Bitcoin and AI Factory Operators55:11 Daniel Lawrence (Connect with on LinkedIn) and OBM (Follow on LinkedIn and OBM .io Website)57:21 Subscribe to the Data Center Sales and Marketing Newsletter (DCSMI)#aifactory #behindthemeter #bitcoinmining #cloudservices #colocation #criticalfacilities #crypto #datacenterenergy #datacentergtm #datacenterindustry #datacentermarketing #datacenterpower #datacenters #datacentersales #datacentersolutions #dcsmi #digitalinfrastructure #edge #energymanagement #energyoptimization #energystrategy #ercot #excesspower #gridflexibility #gridloads #heatreuse #hyperscale #infrastructure #loadflexibility #missioncritical #obm #powergrid #solarfarm #texasgrid #utiltygrid #windfarmAI data centers, AI factories, behind the meter, Bitcoin mining, crypto mining, DCSMI, Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast, Dan Lawrence, data center marketing, data center sales, data center strategy, demand response, energy flexibility, generative AI, grid flexibility, Joshua Feinberg, load flexibility, OBM, OBM energy software