Nscale, Anthropic Discuss Second $45 Billion AI Computing Deal: Report

Nscale is reportedly talking with Anthropic about providing another roughly $45 billion worth of computing power for artificial intelligence (AI). The data center developer is seeking a major customer deal after Microsoft pulled out of a separate project in the UK.

The proposed deal would cover a second building at Nscale's Monarch campus in West Virginia, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the discussions. The building would provide 460 megawatts of computing power using Nvidia's Vera Rubin chips.

Anthropic, the company that develops the Claude AI models, agreed in August to spend $45 billion renting computing power at the same campus. If a second deal of a similar size is completed, the reported total value of the two deals would be about $90 billion.

Bloomberg also reported that Anthropic has the right to make the first offer if Nscale plans to make a deal for a third building at Monarch. Talks are still ongoing, and the terms could change.

The talks come after Microsoft ended its agreement for Nscale's planned data center in Loughton, Essex, as previously reported. The project had faced repeated delays because electricity grid officials told Nscale that power was not expected to be available until the 2030s. Nscale said the limits on the electricity grid near London would not affect its other contracts. The company also said it was still committed to the Loughton project and was looking at other ways to supply power to the site.

The setback shows how difficult it can be to turn large AI computing deals into working data centers when power connections are delayed compared with construction plans. At Monarch, Nscale has described plans for a local power grid that would support growth beyond eight gigawatts. The company bought the campus in March and said it planned to start bringing computing systems online in late 2027. These are still development plans.

The customer talks and construction risks are also part of Nscale's case to investors as it prepares to become a publicly traded company. Nscale filed paperwork for a US initial public offering on Sept. 18 and applied to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol NSCL.