{
  "id": 2539353,
  "title": "The veteran Fortune 500 CEO who turned an 80-year-old AC company into an AI darling",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/the-veteran-fortune-500-ceo-who-turned-an-80-year-old-ac-company-into",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-22T08:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fortune",
    "slug": "fortune",
    "url": "https://fortune.com/article/dave-cote-vertiv-stock-performance-ai-boom/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Vertiv, an 80-year-old AC manufacturer, has dramatically transformed from an overlooked industrial company into a leading player in the AI industry. Since going public in early 2021, its market cap has surged nearly tenfold, from under $11 billion to $109 billion, with an annualized return of 50.5% during the six-and-a-half year period, placing it third among S&P 500 companies. The driving force behind this extraordinary turnaround is David Cote, a retired industrialist who previously led Honeywell to a spectacular revival. Cote, who had retired from Honeywell, was searching for a new challenge and, through an arrangement with Goldman Sachs, was presented with a list of acquisition candidates. Among these, Vertiv stood out as a promising opportunity with its innovative cooling technology for data centers, crucial for the rapid growth of AI. Under Cote's leadership, Vertiv pivoted to become a provider of this revolutionary technology, positioning itself as an indispensable part of the digital age.",
  "summary": "First Dave Cote transformed Honeywell. Then out of retirement he placed a stunning bet on a little known company called Vertiv.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}