NVIDIA to Invest Up to $2.1B in IREN Data Center Firm

According to a newly announced strategic partnership, NVIDIA Corporation is set to invest up to $2.1 billion in data center developer IREN Ltd. to accelerate the expansion of global artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and next-generation computing capacity.

In a joint statement released on Thursday, the two companies confirmed that IREN has granted NVIDIA a five-year stock warrant, allowing the AI chipmaker to purchase up to 30 million shares at an exercise price of $70 per share. Beyond the equity agreement, both companies will collaborate on deploying multi-billion-dollar AI computing infrastructure projects.

As a leading force in AI processors and accelerated computing, NVIDIA Corporation has continued to expand its influence across the AI ecosystem through strategic investments and partnerships. The company has previously backed AI firms such as OpenAI and semiconductor technology company Marvell Technology to support the broader growth of AI and high-performance computing markets. Earlier this week, NVIDIA also secured stock warrants valued at approximately $500 million in optical fiber manufacturer Corning Incorporated.

As part of the latest agreement, IREN announced a $3.4 billion AI cloud services contract with NVIDIA to acquire and deploy the company’s Blackwell GPU platform. The partnership aims to scale NVIDIA AI infrastructure deployments to as much as 5 gigawatts over time, underscoring rising demand for advanced AI data center capacity.

The collaboration will primarily focus on the development of IREN’s Sweetwater campus in Texas, a planned 2-gigawatt data center hub in the United States. For comparison, 1 gigawatt of electricity is capable of powering roughly 750,000 homes simultaneously, highlighting the enormous energy scale associated with AI computing expansion.

Following the announcement, IREN shares rose approximately 10% in after-hours trading to $62.50, while NVIDIA shares remained relatively stable.

The companies stated that the partnership combines NVIDIA’s leadership in AI hardware and accelerated computing with IREN’s expertise in securing critical data center resources, including land and power infrastructure.

On the same day, IREN also announced plans to acquire Spanish data center developer Ingenostrum SL to further support its global expansion strategy.

Founded by Australian brothers Daniel Roberts and Will Roberts, IREN originally focused on Bitcoin mining before pivoting toward AI computing infrastructure. Formerly known as Iris Energy, the company experienced a 285% stock surge last year and has gained an additional 51% so far in 2026.

Last year, Microsoft Corporation signed an AI computing services agreement with IREN reportedly valued at approximately $9.7 billion, further strengthening the company’s position in the rapidly growing AI infrastructure market.

NVIDIA has also invested in several other AI infrastructure companies, including CoreWeave and Nebius Group NV. Because many of these companies are also major purchasers of NVIDIA GPUs and AI accelerators, some industry observers have questioned whether such investments create a “circular financing” dynamic within the AI ecosystem.

Responding to those concerns, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang previously stated that the company’s investments represent only a small fraction of the capital these businesses ultimately require, dismissing claims of “circular investment” as misleading.