Forrest Traub

Fermi America is powering the future of AI in Texas. The 11GW HyperGrid AI campus in Amarillo is set to become one of the largest data center complexes in the U.S., spanning 18 million sq ft and powered by a hybrid of natural gas, solar, wind, and nuclear energy. Nuclear Partnerships: MoUs with Doosan Enerbility and Hyundai Motor Company, plus collaboration with Westinghouse Electric Company, pave the way for four AP1000 reactors a cornerstone of the campus’ long-term clean energy strategy. Financial Momentum: Macquarie Group led a $100M Series C round and a $250M senior loan facility, backing Fermi’s aggressive development timeline. Early Power Delivery: Acquisition of 600MW of natural gas generation ensures the campus can deliver 1GW of AI power by 2026. Strategic Leadership: Co-founded by former Energy Secretary Rick Perry, Fermi is working with the Texas Tech University System to integrate research, talent, and next-gen infrastructure. As CEO Toby Neugebauer puts it: “We are delivering on energy promises made so that America can win again.” This project isn’t just about data centers it’s a blueprint for scaling AI infrastructure with clean, reliable power. Building your infrastructure team? DM me or email o.dennis@futuraenergygroup.com to see how Futura Energy Group can help you hire faster and smarter. #AIInfrastructure #DataCenters #CleanEnergy #NuclearEnergy

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If your team is building with LLMs, you know the value of clean, retrievable data. That's why we're teaming up with Unstructured to streamline one of the hardest parts of AI development. This integration removes friction across the AI stack—from unstructured ingestion to semantic retrieval—so your teams can focus on building. Read more from our Product Marketing Managers, Rini Vasan and Jim Allen Wallace, and Unstructured’s Head of Developer Relations, Maria Khalusova here: https://lnkd.in/e98QqXAB

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Human-centered AI is becoming essential as technology advances, and UT San Antonio is leading the effort. In this new episode of our Launchpad podcast, Dhireesha Kudithipudi, founding director of MATRIX: The AI Consortium for Human Well-Being, explains how UT San Antonio researchers are developing AI that supports decision-making, strengthens well-being and builds trust in emerging technologies. The conversation offers valuable insight for professionals working in AI, ethics, education and innovation. Listen here: https://lnkd.in/guxupKwS UT San Antonio Research | MATRIX - The UTSA AI Consortium for Human Well-Being

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The Ghost in the H-1B Machine: When “Headquarters” Are Empty—and So Is the Boss If you look up the headquarters of a multi-million-dollar H-1B staffing firm in Texas, you expect at least a modest office. Instead, journalist Sara Gonzales recently found something closer to a residential doorbell, a confused 911 operator, and—most importantly—no company in sight. Her viral investigation did something rare: it tested the paperwork against reality. She visited listed addresses for firms such as Qubitz Tech Systems and 3Bees Technologies. One address led to a private home, where the owner, Hari Madiraju, called the police rather than explaining how dozens of approved H-1B workers were being “managed.” Another address pointed to an under-construction building with no signs of business activity. Indian media like Times of India rushed to defend it with “Great companies started in a garage.” True—but Steve Jobs was actually in the garage. In many bodyshop models, the “office” functions mainly as a mailbox and a payroll mechanism, while workers are immediately placed at third-party clients. The deeper problem goes beyond “ghost offices.” It is the fake boss. Legally, an H-1B sponsor must be a real employer under the “right to control” standard. That typically rests on four pillars: hiring/firing, paying salary, direct supervision, and performance evaluation. Many bodyshops can handle the first two. The last two often fail in practice because the day-to-day supervision happens at the end client—banks, healthcare systems, big tech—while the sponsor cannot credibly describe what the employee is doing this week, or how performance is evaluated. When supervision and evaluation are missing, the employer-employee relationship becomes hard to defend. At that point, the sponsor starts to resemble a broker with a payroll API rather than a true employer. Layered on top, there are persistent reports of proxy interviews—one person aces the Zoom interview, another shows up after the contract is signed—leaving clients disappointed, workers underpaid, and the middleman rewarded. Regulators are now moving from paperwork to verification: higher financial friction for high-volume petitioners, selection pressure toward higher wages, and site inspections that probe a simple question—can the listed supervisor clearly explain the worker’s project and oversight? Sara Gonzales showed that some “headquarters” are empty. The more uncomfortable truth is that in many cases, the management structure is empty as well. For legitimate consulting firms that truly supervise and develop teams, stronger enforcement is not a threat—it is overdue clarification. The one thing a ghost office cannot reliably counterfeit is the law.

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Amazon Web Services (AWS) is planning to invest around $𝟭𝟮 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 into new data center campuses in #Louisiana, with STACK Infrastructure developing the sites. Another clear sign of just how fast demand for cloud and AI infrastructure is growing right now. What caught my attention isn’t just the scale - it’s the wider impact:  • Hundreds of permanent roles alongside thousands of construction and indirect jobs  • Significant investment into local power and utility infrastructure  • Continued focus on efficiency and sustainability as hyperscale builds get bigger We’re starting to see these large digital infrastructure projects do more than just add capacity, they’re becoming real drivers of regional growth and investment. Areas that can offer power, connectivity, and room to scale are quickly moving into the spotlight. It’ll be interesting to see how developments like this shape where the next wave of data centers gets built, especially as AI keeps pushing demand higher. I'm curious - What are people seeing on the ground right now?

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H-1B Visa What’s changed? $100,000 Application Fee for New Petitions A new proclamation signed 19 September 2025 introduces a one-time $100,000 fee for new H-1B visa petitions for foreign nationals outside the U.S. meaning employers must pay this for a new H-1B worker applying from abroad. Effective Date The rule takes effect at 12:01 AM ET on September 21, 2025. Any H-1B petition filed after that point for someone outside the U.S. may be subject to this fee. Who Is Affected / Who Is Not Affected: New H-1B applicants who are outside the U.S. after the effective date. Not affected (at least not clearly): Petitions filed before September 21, 2025. Current valid H-1B visa holders. Renewal extensions inside the U.S. as of now, the guidance suggests the fee does not apply to many renewals or extensions, though there’s ambiguity. One-Time vs Annual Fee The White House has clarified that the $100,000 levy is one-time per new petition, not annual. So once paid, it shouldn’t recur for the same petition. Existing Visa Holders & Travel There were initial concerns that re-entry to the U.S. could trigger the fee even for existing H-1B holders; however, guidance has clarified that holders with valid visas, or petitions already approved before the date, are not being forced to pay this fee just to re-enter. Higher Wage / Prevailing Wage Requirements The proclamation also directs the Department of Labor (DoL) to revise prevailing wage rules, raising the salary thresholds for H-1B workers. This is intended to ensure that H-1B wage levels are closer to market/“higher wage” standards. “National Interest” Exception There may be exemptions: if a position is deemed in the “national interest” of the U.S., or for certain industries (healthcare, engineering), though the details on how that will be determined are not fully spelled out yet. What is Still Unclear Whether extensions, changes of employer, amendments filed after the effective date will always be subject to the $100,000 fee. Some of these may be exempt, some not, guidance is mixed. Exactly how “national interest” will be operationalised (which jobs, employers, etc.). What qualifies is not yet fully clear. Whether filing from inside the U.S. but for a new petition (or change of status) triggers the fee. Many reports suggest the fee applies primarily to those outside the U.S., but some ambiguity remains. How this interacts with visa stampings, travel, whether having a valid visa but going out of the U.S. for visa stamping after the date could complicate things. Some guidance suggests avoid travel until clearer.

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If you want your DevOps workflow to feel lighter and faster. This video is for you. In this episode, SAHIL VANDRA, Senior DevOps Engineer I, walks through how he uses GitHub to simplify two major parts of his workflow: - Automated code reviews - Smarter CI/CD pipelines He breaks down how AI helps reduce manual effort, speed up releases, and maintain steady deployments without compromising on quality. If you’re looking for practical ways to bring AI into your DevOps routine, this breakdown gives you a clear, real-world look at what actually works.   Watch the full video here: https://lnkd.in/d3zYaxgb #devops #aidevops #mlops #github #automation

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Thrilled to welcome Texas A&M Institute of Data Science at Texas A&M University as the newest university partner of Interview Query! Aggies now receive complimentary access through Career Services, unlocking: • 1,000 + real interview questions • 30K + company-specific interview guides across 9K + employers • An AI coach that personalizes and streamlines every prep session With these resources, TAMIDS students can step into the job market confident and career-ready. Huge thanks to Drew Casey and Jennifer Cutler for making this collaboration a reality. Curious how Interview Query can level up your own campus? Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gnMWDafk #datascience #interviewprep #TAMU #AggieNetwork #universitypartnership #careerready #interviewquery

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