In the race to build AI infrastructure at extraordinary scale, promised capacity delivery matters as much as speed

LONDON, Nov. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As global demand for AI infrastructure continues to accelerate, construction technology innovator XYZ Reality released a case-study documentary today featuring Applied Digital (NASDAQ: APLD) and commercial construction leader McGough, demonstrating how field-level, real-time verification supports turnover milestones on mission-critical multi-building data center builds.

Produced on site at Applied Digital's Polaris Forge 1 AI Factory campus in Ellendale, North Dakota, the documentary illustrates how collaboration among a data center owner, a general contractor, and XYZ Reality's Engineering Grade AR™ technology gives every team early warning of risks to the critical path, with time to act before they move the delivery date. Owners, project leaders and installation crews all work from the same real-time view of where the build stands and what's coming. Because every verified element rolls up to project and portfolio views, the same data that guides a crew in the field tells an executive whether the delivery date is safe.

Traditional inspection relies on retrospective laser scanning and reality capture, which documents deviations only after concrete is poured or adjacent services are set. In fast-tracked hyperscale facilities, discovering discrepancies weeks later forces costly rework that disrupts critical path milestones.

The documentary showcases an operational alternative: XYZ Reality's fully managed service model. Every day, XYZ's field engineers bring the coordinated 3D design onto the active site with the Atom, XYZ's engineering-grade AR hardhat, checking work in progress against design intent with 3mm accuracy. Emerging issues surface in real time, along with their projected impact on the ready-for-service (RFS) date, giving owners and contractors a live reforecast while there's still time to change the outcome.

"XYZ's technology provides the precision that we need better than what the human eye can identify," said Keith Hardy, Senior Superintendent, McGough Construction. "We're able to be more honest with our schedule. XYZ's dashboard allowed us to really understand at any stage of the project, down to the tenth of a percentage point, how well we are tracking. Not only that, but it allowed our building owner to understand where we were at in real time, and then we're also able to convey that to our trade partners."

During construction of Applied Digital's Polaris Forge 1, McGough requested a proactive check of 12 generator room conduits before equipment placement. XYZ's embedded field engineers identified a two-foot offset from the 3D model that would have caused a severe clash with incoming day tanks. Correcting the alignment prior to concrete pours protected the turnover schedule and established a repeatable, site-wide verification standard, including:

• Point-of-Work Verification: Validating complex MEP runs at set-out catches trade clashes before they become embedded structural roadblocks.
• Repeatable Operational Lessons: Standardizing checks across identical generator rooms enabled McGough and Applied Digital to prevent systemic risk across the campus.
• Dynamic Resource Allocation: Real-time visibility into field progress gives leadership objective data to adjust trade labor and manage material deliveries proactively.

"The time the check took was unnoticeable compared to re-installing conduit that had been embedded wrong," added Hardy. "Laser scanning after installation is already too late. Catching deviations before concrete and equipment go in allows us to apply lessons learned across every room with that same layout and verify installations at set-out."

"The way we build today can't keep up with the pace these AI factories demand," said Anthony Canipa, VP of Client Operations at XYZ Reality. "Our job at XYZ is to bring predictability to everyone with a stake in the build: the builders, the developers, the hyperscalers and the investors behind them. We give teams the ability to be proactive and prevent the issues that cause massive, costly delays before they ever hit the schedule. What we saw at Polaris Forge 1 was excellent coordination between McGough and Applied Digital, because they were working from shared, trusted, verified and forward-looking information."

To watch the full documentary, including behind-the-scenes footage from Applied Digital's Polaris Forge 1 campus build, visit http://xyzreality.com/resources/hyperscale-data-center-construction-film.

About XYZ Reality
XYZ Reality is a leading construction technology provider delivering schedule and cost predictability on the world's most complex mission-critical builds. By combining Engineering Grade AR™ hardware, an integrated cloud platform, and expert on-site end-to-end managed services, XYZ Reality helps hyperscalers, developers, and general contractors to prevent costly rework, protect margins, and hold delivery dates across global infrastructure programs.

XYZ Reality's field-first model pairs precision hardware with cloud software that maintains a single, objective version of truth from element to portfolio views. Its field engineers and construction leaders, drawn from the world's largest hyperscalers and Fortune 100 companies, keep complex builds on schedule and on budget. Learn more at xyzreality.com.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/xyz-reality-and-mcgoughs-new-documentary-proves-delivery-predictability-on-live-ai-factory-campus-build-302937116.html

SOURCE XYZ Reality