Nov 5 (Reuters) - Iron Mountain beat Wall Street

estimates for a key earnings metric in the third quarter on

Wednesday, as businesses turn to its data centers amid rising

demand for AI applications.

Demand for computing power needed to train artificial

intelligence models and run applications such as ChatGPT has

driven a data center boom, expanding the market for companies

such as Iron Mountain that lease such spaces.

Iron Mountain, which operates as a real estate investment

trust, reported adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) of $1.32

per share for the July-September period, above analysts'

estimates of $1.25 according to data compiled by LSEG.

Its AFFO forecast of $1.39 per share for the fourth quarter

also beat estimates of $1.38.

The company is also benefiting from stable cash flows from

its core storage and records management business, which has a

large and diversified customer base including Boeing ( BA ),

Akamai Technologies ( AKAM ) and Coca-Cola.

Revenue for the quarter ended September 30 rose about 13%

from a year earlier to $1.75 billion, driven by a 16% increase

in services and a 10% gain in storage rentals.