Trump-branded datacenter project faces leadership crisis amid stalled expansion plans

Fermi America, the company behind the Trump-branded Project Matador datacenter in West Texas, is facing a major leadership crisis as CEO Toby Neugebauer suddenly resigned Friday amid multiple lawsuits and stalled expansion plans for the ambitious 17-gigawatt facility.

The corporate shakeup continued over the weekend with CFO Miles Everson also stepping down to join the board, while the company announced a "Fermi 2.0" restructuring plan. The leadership changes come as the company struggles to secure power equipment and find a hyperscaler customer to anchor its massive datacenter buildout.

Leadership turmoil and legal battles

Neugebauer's departure follows a series of legal challenges, including accusations of fraud related to his previous venture—an anti-woke lending app that collapsed into bankruptcy. In a twist of legal maneuvering, Neugebauer has countersued several of his former investors, including conservative personality Vivek Ramaswamy, PayPal and Palantir cofounder Peter Thiel, and Thiel's venture firm Founders Fund, under RICO statutes.

The timing of Neugebauer's exit appears particularly significant given reports of friction between the former CEO and potential customers. Analysts at Stifel noted that customer conversations have accelerated since the announcement, suggesting Neugebauer may have been an obstacle to securing business partnerships.

Ambitious but stalled expansion plans

Project Matador aims to become one of the largest datacenter campuses in the world, with plans for up to 17 gigawatts of behind-the-meter generation capacity. The current 5,263-acre site, owned by the Texas Tech University System, sits beside the Panhandle-Hugoton Gas Field and adjacent to Pantex, the US Department of Energy facility responsible for nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly for the past 70 years.

The facility's power generation plans are equally ambitious, including four Westinghouse nuclear reactors alongside solar arrays and natural gas turbines. However, during the company's March earnings call, Fermi admitted it had not yet secured any renters for its planned buildout, despite reportedly finding a tenant in November.

New leadership structure

In response to the crisis, Fermi has established an "Office of the CEO" led by newly appointed Co-Presidents Jacobo Ortiz Blanes (former COO) and Anna Bofa (former board advisor with experience at Google, Dropbox, Pinterest, and Meta). Lead Independent Board Director Marius Haas, a veteran technology executive with previous leadership roles at Compaq, HPE, KKR, and Dell, has been named chairman of the board and will oversee the search for Neugebauer's permanent replacement.

The company has engaged executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles to help find a new CEO, with a board committee including Haas, Lee McIntire, and Cordel Robbin-Coker overseeing the process. Additionally, Jeffrey S. Stein, an experienced corporate turnaround advisor and co-founder of Breakpoint Advisory Partners, has joined the board.

Market reaction and future outlook

Investors have reacted negatively to the leadership turmoil, with Fermi's shares closing down 15 percent Monday and trading more than 80 percent below their October high of $29.08. The company is also establishing a new headquarters in Dallas and building out an office in Amarillo near the Project Matador site while adding two additional board seats.

Despite the setbacks, Texas Tech Chancellor Brandon Creighton remains supportive, stating that "Project Matador has the potential to deliver generational impact—not just for (Texas Tech), but for national security, American energy independence, and the future of advanced research and industry in West Texas."

The challenges facing Fermi America reflect broader difficulties in the datacenter industry, where ambitious AI infrastructure projects must navigate complex power generation requirements, hyperscaler partnerships, and regulatory approvals. As the company searches for new leadership and attempts to secure its first major customer, the fate of Project Matador—and its potential to become a cornerstone of American AI infrastructure—remains uncertain.