--- title: "Iron Mountain's survey says 86% of AI projects stalled; it signed 110 megawatts anyway" description: "The company's own survey says 86% of AI projects stall on data debt, while its data-center arm books 110 megawatts of leases on borrowed money. On November 5 the market finds out which half of Iron Mountain the numbers pay." publisher: "The Inference" section: "Data Center" published: 2026-10-21T18:08:11.662Z modified: 2026-10-21T18:08:11.662Z canonical: https://theinference.org/article/iron-mountain-s-survey-says-86-of-organizations-saw-ai-projects-stall-it-signed-110-megawatts language: en keywords: "Iron Mountain, Data Centers, AI, Debt, Earnings, Survey" --- # Iron Mountain's survey says 86% of AI projects stalled; it signed 110 megawatts anyway > The company's own survey says 86% of AI projects stall on data debt, while its data-center arm books 110 megawatts of leases on borrowed money. On November 5 the market finds out which half of Iron Mountain the numbers pay. [Iron Mountain](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/iron-mountain) spent the weekend telling 240,000 customers that their AI projects are stuck, and its own stock is priced as if those projects will soon need somewhere to live [1]. On October 19, at the [Gartner](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/gartner) IT Symposium in Orlando, the records-storage REIT [released The Information Supercycle, a survey](https://www.comparethecloud.net/news/iron-mountain-finds-86-of-organisations-have-had-ai-projects-delayed-or-cancelled-over-data-concerns) finding that 86% of organizations had an AI project delayed or canceled over data concerns in the past 12 months [1]. The same ticker also holds 110 megawatts of new data-center signings from the first seven months of 2026, 75 of them in July alone [2]. One company, two businesses, and the survey describes both. The stall is the product. Four in ten organizations burn at least 41% of an AI project's timeline on manual data preparation, only 39% keep data "digitized and structured," 56% blame disconnected systems and silos, and 53% still point to legacy formats or physical archives, the boxes Iron Mountain has warehoused since 1951 [1]. "AI readiness is about much more than deploying the latest technology," said Varun Gupta, the company's senior vice president of global product and solutions marketing [1]. The cure has a seller, and the seller wrote the diagnosis. *Chart: **Most enterprises cannot trace the data their AI models use** Bar chart of Iron Mountain survey findings: 70% cannot track data lifecycle, 56% cite silos, 53% legacy formats, 40% spend 41% of timelines on preparation, 39% have data digitized and structured* *Most enterprises cannot trace the data their AI models use [1]* ## The market pays for growth, not the cure At $113.88 on October 20, Iron Mountain trades at 81.34 times earnings on a $33.9 billion market cap, with [Jefferies](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/jefferies) [cutting its target to $135 from $147 on October 12](https://www.ad-hoc-news.de/boerse/news/nebenwerte/jefferies-cuts-target-to-usd-135-00-for-iron-mountain-stock/70376849) [3]. The growth half is what carries that multiple: data-center, digital and asset-lifecycle businesses grew more than 50% in the second quarter, revenue hit $2.03 billion, and [full-year guidance sits at $7.94–8.01 billion](https://cxotoday.com/ai/iron-mountain-report-data-debt-forces-86-of-enterprises-to-delay-or-scramble-ai-deployments/) [4]. The growth half also borrows. Debt has climbed from $14.1 billion in late 2023 to $19.6 billion, capital spending has outrun operating cash flow in 11 of the last 12 quarters, and [the June notes cost a fixed 6.25% to 2035](https://theinference.org/article/ai-debt-now-has-two-prices-15-for-coreweave-6-25-for-iron-mountain) [4]. *Chart: **Debt is up $5.5 billion in three years while capex outruns operating cash in 11 of 12 quarters** Line chart of Iron Mountain quarterly debt, capital spending and operating cash flow from Q3 2023 to Q2 2026, showing debt rising from $14.1B to $19.6B while capex exceeds operating cash flow in most quarters* *Quarterly figures from Iron Mountain's SEC filings, retrieved 21 October 2026. Debt in USD billions at period end; capex and operating cash flow in USD billions per quarter. [5]* ## The survey cuts both ways, and Iron Mountain published it The 86% stalled projects are, in the bulls' telling, future demand for the storage-and-governance half. They are also the tenants for the 110 megawatts. If four in ten companies cannot finish preparing data, the leases signed in July fill slowly, and the $19.6 billion of debt waits for revenue that arrives late. ## The November 5 print sorts it Consensus expects $1.99 billion of revenue against $1.75 billion a year earlier, and EPS of $0.6120 against $1.32, a comparison the debt service makes unforgiving [3]. Watch the data-center leasing line, and whether 75 megawatts in a month repeats while 86% of the market reports its projects frozen [3]. ## The other side is real The bulls have a fair case: enterprises that cannot deploy AI still must fix the data underneath it, and 95% call data a top priority [1]. Deferred is not canceled. But a company cannot charge 81 times earnings for growth that its own research says is deferred, and collect a 6.25% coupon on the money building it, without the November numbers doing the talking [1]. ## Takeaway Iron Mountain published research showing 86% of AI projects stalled on data problems, while its data-center arm signs 110 megawatts of leases on $19.6 billion of debt; November 5 earnings decide whether the market pays for growth or the stall. ## Sources 1. [Compare the Cloud, Iron Mountain finds 86% of organisations have had AI projects delayed or cancelled over data concerns, 21 October 2026](https://www.comparethecloud.net/news/iron-mountain-finds-86-of-organisations-have-had-ai-projects-delayed-or-cancelled-over-data-concerns) 2. [The Inference, AI debt now has two prices: 15% for CoreWeave, 6.25% for Iron Mountain, 17 October 2026](https://theinference.org/article/ai-debt-now-has-two-prices-15-for-coreweave-6-25-for-iron-mountain) 3. [Ad-hoc News, Jefferies cuts target to USD 135.00 for Iron Mountain stock, 21 October 2026](https://www.ad-hoc-news.de/boerse/news/nebenwerte/jefferies-cuts-target-to-usd-135-00-for-iron-mountain-stock/70376849) 4. [CXO Today, Iron Mountain Report: Data Debt Forces 86% of Enterprises to Delay or Scramble AI Deployments, 21 October 2026](https://cxotoday.com/ai/iron-mountain-report-data-debt-forces-86-of-enterprises-to-delay-or-scramble-ai-deployments/) 5. [Iron Mountain, quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved 21 October 2026](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001020569) --- Iron Mountain's survey says 86% of AI projects stalled; it signed 110 megawatts anyway — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/iron-mountain-s-survey-says-86-of-organizations-saw-ai-projects-stall-it-signed-110-megawatts