TONY GRAYSON
VETERAN
Executive. Consultant. Founder.
Built & Sold a Top 10 Global Modular Data Center Company
Top 10 Data Center Influencer
FEATURED IN
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BACKGROUND
Stockdale Award-Winning Navy Commander & Tech Innovator
Tony Grayson is the President & GM of Northstar Enterprise + Defense, where he is redefining digital infrastructure to support the massive scale of AI Inference, Agentic AI, and sovereign defense. A former U.S. Navy Submarine Commander and recognized "Top 10 Data Center Voice," Tony specializes in rapid capacity deployment, nuclear integration (SMRs/microreactors), and distributed warfare strategy. His career combines high-stakes operational command with executive leadership across AWS, Oracle, and Meta.
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Leadership Distinction: Recipient of the Vice Admiral James Bond Stockdale Award: the U.S. Navy's highest honor for leadership.
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Executive Scale: Former Senior Vice President at Oracle, managing a $1.3B budget and a 1,000+ person organization, following executive infrastructure roles at AWS and Meta.
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Infrastructure Velocity: Revolutionizing the construction model to deploy high-density infrastructure for Agentic AI and Inference in months rather than years, solving the critical capacity bottleneck for hyperscalers.
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Future of Defense: Pioneering a distributed warfare architecture that integrates edge compute, resilient networks, and secure enclaves (commercial-grade SCIFs) to ensure data sovereignty in contested environments.
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Entrepreneurial Success: Took over a failing modular data center company, transformed it into a global Top 10, and sold it to Northstar in 2025
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Nuclear Authority: Commanded nuclear submarines, bringing deep operational expertise to today's Small Modular Reactor (SMR) energy transition.
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Veteran Impact: As Veterans Chair for Nomad Futurists and Infrastructure Masons, he has personally helped transition hundreds of veterans into high-growth technology careers.
Advisory & Public Speaking
Speaking & Strategic Advisory
Tony Grayson is a globally recognized authority in the data center, AI, and defense sectors, known for transforming complex technical challenges into actionable strategic insights. As a former U.S. Navy Submarine Commander and award-winning executive, Tony blends operational precision with visionary thinking, offering audiences a unique perspective on leadership, energy resilience, and the scaling of Agentic AI. His talks have inspired teams at Fortune 500 companies, global tech conferences, and defense organizations to embrace innovation with discipline and purpose.
As a consultant, Tony partners with enterprises, hyperscalers, and sovereign agencies to optimize infrastructure strategy, implement defense-grade systems, and design sustainable power solutions. Whether advising on organizational transformation or technology modernization, he brings decades of hands-on experience from AWS, Meta, and Oracle, bridging the critical gap between mission-ready reliability and next-generation innovation.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Tony has led massive infrastructure programs at Meta, AWS, and Oracle, managing multi-billion-dollar investments powering the digital economy. At Meta, he oversaw 30+ data centers spanning 8+ million square feet, achieving 99.99% uptime while managing $225 million in budgets. At AWS, he reimagined data center designs to slash build times and optimize capacity. At Oracle, as SVP of Physical Infrastructure, he led 1,000+ people with a $1.3 billion budget, scaling Oracle Cloud from 4 to 41 regions, deploying a new region every 21 days, an unmatched industry pace. His leadership reduced time to market by 78% while saving $186 million. He pioneered Oracle's Dedicated Region Cloud@Customer, the industry's first fully managed on-premises cloud, securing $100 million+ deals and transforming secure, sovereign cloud infrastructure.
Tony took over failing EdgePoint Systems (later Compass Quantum) in 2021, turned it profitable for the first time since 2016, and scaled it to $200M+ in signed contracts. In April 2025, Northstar Technologies Group acquired the company, with Tony becoming President and GM of Northstar Federal and Northstar Enterprise & Defense. Ranked among the Top 10 Data Center Influencers and leading a Top 10 Modular Data Center Company, he pioneered fiber-reinforced polymer composites, 30% lighter than aluminum, withstanding Category 5 hurricanes, F5 tornadoes, and .50 caliber ballistics. His modular solutions deploy high-density compute (30–132 kW/rack) in 3–9 months instead of years, optimized for NVIDIA GB200, AMD MI300/MI400X, and AWS Inferentia. Post-acquisition, he secured five major contracts in four months, projecting $100 million+ revenue by Year 2. Tony's infrastructure delivers AI compute where needed, urban lots, remote sites, or tactical military zones.
Tony leads next-generation infrastructure for global defense, where requirements outpace commercial technology. He assembled a "dream team" of retired three-star flag officers: VADM (ret) Trussler (Naval Intelligence), VADM (ret) Whitesell (Navy Air Boss), Lt. Gen. (ret) Atha (Air Force), Lt. Gen. (ret) Glavy (Marine Corps), and Lt. Gen. (ret) Morrison (Army G6). Northstar deploys defense-grade modular data centers, SCIFs, and AI factories for harsh environments, supporting U.S. DoD CJADC2, Australia's Land 4140, NATO platforms, and sovereign AI clouds. His patented low-carbon, recyclable techniques ensure resilient, secure infrastructure. Tony bridges Silicon Valley innovation and Pentagon requirements.
Tony drives sustainable data centers beyond traditional metrics, addressing water consumption, supply chain carbon, and renewable energy. His innovations include recyclable composites, waterless cooling, and nuclear integration for carbon-neutral AI infrastructure. As Veterans Chair for Infrastructure Masons (2023+) and Nomad Futurist (2024+), he has personally helped transition 100+ veterans into high-growth technology careers. As an advisory board member for TerraPower and Holtec International, he advises on nuclear innovations for data centers. Through Salute Mission Critical and extensive mentorship, he empowers veterans to thrive in tech.
A Top 10 Data Center Influencer (2021–2025), Tony has authored over 40 articles on edge computing, AI infrastructure, and sustainability. He keynotes at AFCEA, DataCenter Dynamics, and industry podcasts, reaching tens of thousands with bold ideas on hyperscale-defense convergence. As a strategic advisor to defense, technology, and nuclear firms, he combines submarine command experience, billion-dollar program leadership, and entrepreneurship to shape the standards and architectures defining critical infrastructure for the AI era.
Executive Leadership Experience
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