Transformer lead times balloon from 500 to 1,120 days, YC partner calls it a startup opportunity
ycombinator · x · 2026-10-08
YC partner Jared (@snowmaker) amplified a deep-dive on power infrastructure: AI data centers need step-up transformers, and lead times have stretched from under 500 days in 2021 to over 1,120 today. Transformer cores rely on grain-oriented electrical steel processed for about five days in 1,200°C annealing furnaces — and only one US company, Cleveland-Cliffs, makes that steel. He frames the bottleneck as a prime startup opportunity.
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