[d_burfoot]

I'm not sure if this is the direction the OP is going, but I would love to see a world where local small-time investors can get a bank loan, rent a facility, set up a bunch of computers, and run open-source cloud software on them that provides 95% of the features that most businesses need.

Running a cloud data center could be a business like operating a self-storage facility or a car wash. Small investors love this kind of operation.

[DASD]

This brings back painful yesteryear memories when consultants would push Microsoft Small Business Server for an on-prem all in one IT solution and charge extra to move to the cloud(colocation). A Linux-based alternative appeared named Clark Connect.

[jacobsenscott]

These are called co-los (co-location facilities). Probably any medium to large city has a few.

[mrhottakes]

then private equity moves in, buys up the small and inefficient local data centers, and consolidates them into a massive conglomerate that can charge whatever they want