Nvidia invests £500 million pounds in UK based Nscale to boost AI infrastructure growth in Britain

Nvidia, the US technology giant, has committed £500 million to Nscale, an AI infrastructure start-up based in London. The announcement, made during President Trump’s state visit, marks a significant step for the UK’s ambition to lead in artificial intelligence technology. Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s chief executive, described Nscale as a potential national champion capable of generating up to £50 billion in cumulative revenue over the coming six years.

Nscale emerged from stealth only last year and has quickly established itself as a formidable player in AI cloud services and data centre development. Founded by Josh Payne, the company recently raised $155 million in a series A round, led by Sandton Capital Partners. This follows an earlier $30 million seed funding secured in December 2023. Nscale’s strategy is to take a full-stack approach, building infrastructure from the ground up to provide AI computing power for industries and research institutions, ensuring sensitive data remains within Europe’s borders.

The UK Government’s AI action plan, announced in January, highlighted Nscale’s commitment to invest $2.5 billion in strengthening domestic data centre capacity over three years. The firm has signed a contract to construct the nation’s largest “sovereign” AI data centre in Loughton, Essex, due for completion in 2026. The Loughton site is expected to create 500 jobs during construction and 250 permanent roles to operate the facility across three years. Plans are also underway for more modular data centres within the UK, deepening the infrastructure available to British businesses and researchers.

Nscale, in partnership with Microsoft, will deliver one of the most powerful AI supercomputers in the UK at Loughton, initially installing approximately 23,000 Nvidia GPUs by early 2027. This collaboration aims to bolster Microsoft’s Azure services within Britain and provides a significant boost to the country’s high-performance computing capabilities. On a global scale, Nscale intends to deploy as many as 300,000 Nvidia GPUs, which are in high demand for their remarkable processing efficiency.

Jensen Huang emphasised the scale of Nscale’s ambitions, noting the company’s projected £50 billion revenue trajectory over six years. He expressed enthusiasm for the potential transformation of Nscale into a major UK technology enterprise. The partnership between Nvidia and Nscale is seen as pivotal in establishing the UK as a key player in the rapidly evolving AI sector.

A separate agreement will see Nscale, Nvidia, and OpenAI create Stargate UK, an infrastructure platform tailored to deploy OpenAI’s technologies nationwide. Stargate UK will work across multiple sites, including Cobalt Park in the northeast. The move coincides with recent senior hires at Nscale, including Karl Havard from Amazon Web Services and Ron Huisman, formerly of AtlasEdge and Liberty Global.

As Britain competes for global leadership in technology, the impact of Nvidia’s investment in Nscale is expected to attract further interest and expedite the domestic development of AI infrastructure, reinforcing the UK’s status as an emerging superpower in the field.