Nscale, a UK-based AI hyperscaler, has raised $155 million in a landmark Series A funding round, positioning itself as a key player in the rapidly growing market for AI infrastructure. Led by Sandton Capital Partners and joined by Kestrel, Bluesky Asset Management, and Florence Capital, the funding marks one of the largest Series A rounds in the UK.

Key Points:

• Raised $155 million in a Series A round led by Sandton Capital Partners.
• Funding supports large-scale GPU infrastructure deployment and the expansion of its 1.3 GW greenfield data center pipeline.
• Nscale plans to launch a public AI cloud service in Q1 2025, offering advanced AI training and inference solutions.
• The company differentiates itself through a vertically integrated model that combines data centers, GPU infrastructure, and AI-specific software.

Launched from stealth in May 2024, Nscale has quickly built a reputation for its vertically integrated approach to AI cloud services. Unlike competitors that offer isolated components such as GPUs or software, Nscale combines proprietary data centers, GPU superclusters, and a custom AI software stack to deliver a comprehensive solution for training, fine-tuning, and running AI models. This full-stack approach, according to CEO Joshua Payne, enables the company to achieve superior speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.

“The AI market is scaling rapidly, and so are we,” Payne said. “By owning every layer of infrastructure, we can design bespoke GPU clusters tailored to customer requirements and deploy them faster than competitors. This funding allows us to bring sustainable, cost-effective AI capabilities to more customers globally.”

The newly secured capital will fund several strategic initiatives. Chief among them is the deployment of large-scale GPU clusters to meet surging demand for AI training and inference workloads. The funds will also accelerate the development of Nscale’s 1.3 GW pipeline of greenfield data centers, with 120 MW slated for deployment in 2025 across Ohio, Texas, the UK, and Norway. These sites are designed to support large-scale supercluster deployments while minimizing environmental impact through advanced liquid cooling technologies and renewable energy sources.

Additionally, Nscale is preparing to launch a public AI cloud service in Q1 2025. This offering will provide developers with access to purpose-built AI training and inference solutions, integrated into a flexible development environment. The service aims to attract a wide range of users, from startups to large enterprises, by addressing common barriers to scaling AI workloads.