Anthropic to rent about 460 megawatts of compute from Nscale in proposed $45 billion cloud deal, CNBC reports

Anthropic is in talks for a large cloud supply arrangement with Nscale that would be valued at about $45 billion, according to CNBC, with the AI company expected to rent roughly 460 megawatts of compute capacity at an Nscale data center development in West Virginia.

CNBC reported that the agreement is structured around Anthropic obtaining processing capacity for its models rather than taking ownership of the underlying infrastructure, with the compute allocation tied to the development of Nscale’s data center capacity in the state. The report described the figures as coming from sources familiar with the matter, rather than from company statements.

The reported scale of the capacity commitment highlights the intensifying demand among AI developers for dedicated power and data center infrastructure. Renting large blocks of compute is intended to provide more predictable availability for model development and deployment, while also shifting some of the construction and operational burdens of data center capacity to the infrastructure provider.

The proposed deal is also notable for the size of its valuation, which sources described as $45 billion. If finalized on those terms, it would represent a major long-term customer relationship for Nscale’s West Virginia buildout, and it would likely influence how quickly the planned capacity is brought online to meet customer demand.

For Anthropic, a contract of this magnitude would potentially tighten the supply chain constraints that have affected parts of the AI industry, particularly where power availability and data center capacity expansion are limiting factors. For Nscale, the arrangement would be a key step toward securing anchor demand that can support financing and construction decisions for data center projects.

As with many large cloud and compute agreements, details including final pricing, the timing of capacity delivery, and the scope of services were not provided in the report and are not independently confirmed in the information available here. The arrangement could also be subject to customary closing conditions and contracting terms that may affect when service starts.

CNBC’s report does not indicate whether regulators or other authorities would require specific approvals for the arrangement. However, because the described compute would depend on power and infrastructure development in West Virginia, permitting, grid interconnection, and construction milestones could be practical determinants of whether and how quickly the capacity becomes available to Anthropic.

Neither company provided a public confirmation of the deal details referenced by CNBC in the information reviewed for this article, and it remains unclear whether the final terms would match the reported valuation and megawatt allocation.