# PPG's specialized gray coatings boost sales amid AI boom

Digest AI · Business & Funding · published 2026-10-22T11:01:23Z

Canonical: https://digestai.news/story/ppg-s-specialized-gray-coatings-boost-sales-amid-ai-boom

## Summary

Tech companies are increasingly painting data‑center structures with specialized gray coatings applied over gray concrete and steel. The coatings are designed to resist fire, rust and static electricity, meeting functional needs for the expanding data‑center footprint driven by the AI boom.

PPG supplies those gray coatings and is seeing higher sales as a result. According to JLL, each data‑center coating project costs between $3M to $8M. The story was reported by Emmy Martin of the New York Times and highlights how AI‑related growth is creating new demand for protective paint products.

## Key points

- AI boom drives tech firms to paint data‑center structures with gray coatings.
- PPG provides specialized gray coatings that resist fire, rust and static electricity.
- JLL estimates coating projects cost $3M to $8M per data center.

## Why it matters

The surge in AI‑driven data‑center construction lifts demand for protective coatings, giving paint makers like PPG a new growth avenue.

## Sources

1. [How the AI boom is boosting paint maker PPG's sales: its specialized gray coatings serve critical functional needs and total $3M to $8M per data center, per JLL](https://nytimes.com/2026/10/22/technology/ai-data-centers-paint.html) (nytimes.com, 2026-10-22)

## Cite

Digest AI, "PPG's specialized gray coatings boost sales amid AI boom", 22 October 2026, https://digestai.news/story/ppg-s-specialized-gray-coatings-boost-sales-amid-ai-boom

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