Microsoft swerves multibillion-dollar Nscale data centre expansion Tech Microsoft has opted against expanding a major data centre deal with British AI dealing Nscale that could have been worth tens of billions of dollars, in fresh sign of the challenges facing the industry’s vast infrastructure spending plans. The US tech giant decided not to take up an option to more than double the computing [...]
Healey’s grid pledge faces test as data centre pipeline stalls Tech John Healey’s Budget pledge to fast-track electricity connections for British data centres faces an immediate test, as new research shows only 13 per cent of planned capacity is under construction. The Chancellor announced a new Data Centre Covenant on Wednesday, offering strategically important projects priority access to Britain’s electricity grid in exchange for commitments on [...]
Budget 2026: Healey unveils data centre deal in bid to keep Britain’s AI data in the UK Budget 2026 John Healey has unveiled a new deal offering data centre developers priority access to Britain’s electricity grid in exchange for investment in jobs and environmental protections. Announcing the British Data Centre Covenant in Wednesday’s Budget, Healey said the government would impose strict conditions on developers while helping critical facilities secure the power needed to support [...]
Data centre builders could face new demands for priority grid access October 27, 2026 The UK government is considering forcing data centre developers to invest in local communities and meet sustainability targets in exchange for priority access to the grid, as ministers miss their own deadline for introducing new planning rules. Under proposals being examined ahead of Wednesday’s Budget, developers could be required to make financial contributions to local [...]
AI minister hints at Budget measures as UK weighs tougher tech rules October 23, 2026 AI minister Kanishka Narayan has hinted at new measures in next week’s Budget, as the government considers tougher regulation of AI alongside plans to reduce Britain’s dependence on foreign technology. Narayan said ministers must go beyond regulating AI and develop domestic technology to give Britain greater influence over how it is used. Speaking on BBC’s [...]
Nscale eyes second $45bn deal with Anthropic after Microsoft setback October 20, 2026 British AI infrastructure firm, Nscale, is in talks to secure a second $45bn (£33.5bn) computing deal with Anthropic, just a day after Microsoft pulled out of its flagship UK data centre project. The Nvidia-backed company is negotiating an agreement to supply the US AI giant with computing power from a second facility at its Monarch [...]
Starling warns UK risks being ‘second in the queue’ on AI October 15, 2026 Britain risks becoming “second in the queue” for AI unless it invests more in domestic infrastructure, a government AI adviser has warned, as Starling Bank becomes the first lender to train an AI model on a UK sovereign cloud. Harriet Rees, Starling’s chief information officer and the Treasury’s AI champion for financial services, warned that [...]
Credo Technology: The next big opportunity in AI? September 2, 2026 Those looking for the next big thing in a crowded field should look at Credo Technology, the company that provides the connective tissue that knits together AI data centres, writes Abdullah Cheref By June 2025, everyone chasing the AI boom seemed focused on GPUs. I was more interested in what connected them. Those chips are [...]
Ofgem warns on grid squeeze after Heathrow data centre approved August 14, 2026 The energy watchdog Ofgem has warned that speculative data centre projects risk holding up viable investments on Britain’s electricity grid, after councillors approved another power-hungry facility near Heathrow Airport. Hounslow Council has backed plans for a data centre on a 12.2-acre brownfield site at the Haslemere Heathrow Estate, which would require an 80MVA high-capacity electricity [...]
Nscale doubles London office space as UK staff grows sixfold August 5, 2026 Nscale has doubled its London office space as the AI hyperscaler cements its presence in the capital, City AM can reveal. The tech startup, which develops data centres for AI firms and is reportedly eyeing a $25bn valuation in an upcoming IPO, has leased out an extra floor in the Mayfair building that houses its [...]