NVIDIA and Australian data centre operator IREN have announced a major strategic partnership to develop up to 5 gigawatts of AI infrastructure, marking one of the largest AI data centre expansion projects unveiled this year. The initiative is aimed at meeting the rapidly growing global demand for artificial intelligence computing power as AI adoption accelerates across industries.
As part of the agreement, Nvidia could invest up to US$2.1 billion in IREN through warrants that would allow the chipmaker to purchase up to 30 million IREN shares over the next five years at an exercise price of US$70 per share. The partnership highlights Nvidia’s continued push to secure large-scale AI infrastructure capacity as technology companies race to expand computing resources for advanced AI models and enterprise workloads.
The companies stated that the collaboration will focus on deploying Nvidia DSX-aligned AI infrastructure across IREN’s global data centre pipeline. A major portion of future development is expected to centre around IREN’s 2-gigawatt Sweetwater campus in Texas, which is being positioned as a flagship AI factory deployment site. The facilities are expected to support large-scale AI training, inference operations, and cloud-based AI services for startups and enterprise clients.
IREN, which initially gained prominence through bitcoin mining operations, has increasingly shifted its business focus toward AI cloud infrastructure and high-performance computing services. The company recently expanded its power portfolio to approximately 5 gigawatts through acquisitions and infrastructure development projects. According to recent reports, IREN expects its AI cloud business to generate annualized run-rate revenue exceeding US$3.7 billion by the end of 2026 as demand for GPU-powered computing continues to rise.
Industry analysts believe the partnership reflects the broader transformation of the global data centre market as artificial intelligence drives unprecedented demand for power, GPUs, cooling systems, and networking infrastructure. Major technology firms are collectively expected to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure this year alone. Experts say large-scale AI factories are rapidly becoming critical digital infrastructure for governments, enterprises, and AI-native startups competing in the global AI race.
