AVAIO Digital has appointed Matt Cox, CPA, as vice president of construction accounting, adding a real estate development finance executive as the data center developer scales its campus portfolio to serve AI, high-performance computing and hyperscale customers.
Cox brings 10 years of experience across real estate development, project accounting, financial planning and analysis, and capital management. In his new role, he will lead project accounting across AVAIO Digital’s expanding portfolio, with responsibility for strengthening financial reporting, controls and visibility across its development pipeline.
The appointment comes as data center developers face growing capital and construction requirements tied to AI infrastructure and cloud computing demand. For AVAIO, which develops large-scale build-to-suit, turnkey and powered-shell facilities, expanding its construction accounting capabilities adds financial infrastructure to support projects across multiple campuses.
“Matt’s experience building disciplined accounting functions across complex, high-growth real estate portfolios makes him a great fit as we scale our own business,” CEO Mark McComiskey said. “The financial rigor Matt brings will be critical as we continue to deliver capacity to customers across multiple campuses.”
Cox joins AVAIO from Brookfield Properties, where he served as vice president and built an accounting function into a seven-person team. His responsibilities included establishing processes, controls and reporting systems while working with financial planning and senior leadership on quarterly forecasts and business plans.
At Brookfield, Cox also managed monthly capital calls and distributions across a portfolio valued at $6.6 billion. That work required coordination with internal stakeholders and capital partners to manage funding and cash flow across a complex national portfolio containing multiple projects.
His experience managing capital across development projects is particularly relevant to the data center sector, where large campuses can require significant investment before capacity is delivered to customers. Maintaining visibility into project costs, funding requirements and construction progress becomes increasingly important as developers operate across multiple sites simultaneously.
Cox also led implementation efforts involving PMWeb and Yardi for Brookfield’s logistics group, aligning technology systems and workflows with accounting requirements. That combination of development accounting and systems implementation gives AVAIO experience that can support both financial controls and the operational processes behind a larger development platform.
Before Brookfield, Cox spent more than two years at Wood Partners as a senior accountant supporting multifamily development projects across Arizona, Southern California and the Pacific Northwest.
His responsibilities there included general ledger accounting, loan draws and equity capital calls. He also oversaw the transition of completed developments from development accounting into stabilized operations, providing experience across different stages of the real estate development lifecycle.
Cox began his career at EY as an assurance associate, conducting financial statement audits for clients in real estate, manufacturing, oil and gas, and the nonprofit sector. He also trained incoming associates on audit procedures and technical standards.
He holds a Master of Accountancy and a bachelor’s degree in accounting and international business from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and is a Certified Public Accountant.
“I’m excited to join the AVAIO team and help support the company’s next phase of growth,” Cox said.
AVAIO Digital’s expansion is taking place within a data center market being reshaped by increasingly compute-intensive workloads. AI and high-performance computing are driving demand for large concentrations of power and purpose-built infrastructure, while hyperscale technology companies continue to seek additional capacity.
Those requirements are also increasing the financial and operational complexity of data center development. Developers must coordinate construction, capital deployment and customer delivery schedules across projects that can involve substantial infrastructure and long development timelines.
AVAIO positions its portfolio around flexible large-scale build-to-suit turnkey and powered-shell solutions. The privately owned company draws on leadership experience across data centers, renewable and traditional energy assets, and other mission-critical infrastructure.
Cox’s appointment strengthens the financial operations supporting that development strategy. As AVAIO adds campuses and delivers additional capacity, his role will center on creating the accounting discipline and project-level financial visibility needed to manage a larger, more capital-intensive portfolio.
