Nscale Raises $2 Billion Series C — the Largest Funding Round in European Tech History

London-based AI infrastructure company Nscale has closed a $2 billion Series C funding round — the largest in European tech history — valuing the company at $14.6 billion. The round positions Nscale as Europe's answer to the massive AI infrastructure buildout currently dominated by U.S. hyperscalers.

A Who's Who of Investors

The round was led by Norwegian industrial conglomerate Aker ASA and 8090 Industries, with participation from an unusually diverse group of strategic and financial investors: Citadel, Dell, Jane Street, Lenovo, Nokia, NVIDIA, and Point72. The mix of hardware manufacturers, hedge funds, and semiconductor companies reflects the broad conviction that AI infrastructure demand will continue to outstrip supply for years to come.

Perhaps more notable than the money is the talent joining Nscale's board: former Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg, former Yahoo President Susan Decker, and former Meta President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg. Their collective experience in scaling global technology operations adds operational credibility to what has been primarily an engineering-driven company.

Vertically Integrated AI Infrastructure

Nscale's pitch differs from traditional cloud providers by offering vertically integrated AI infrastructure that spans GPU compute, high-speed networking, data services, and orchestration software. The company argues that the fragmented approach of buying compute from one provider, networking from another, and storage from a third creates inefficiencies that waste significant portions of expensive GPU capacity.

The $2 billion will fund expansion across Europe, North America, and Asia. Aker's previously announced joint venture with Nscale will be fully rolled into the company, consolidating their data center assets under the Nscale brand.

European AI Sovereignty

The funding comes as European policymakers increasingly push for AI sovereignty — the ability to train and deploy AI models on European soil, subject to European regulations. Nscale has positioned itself as the infrastructure layer that makes this possible, offering EU-based compute that complies with GDPR and the EU AI Act without the latency and legal complexity of routing data through U.S.-based hyperscaler regions.

The previous record for European tech funding was held by Revolut's $800 million round in 2021. Nscale's $2 billion more than doubles that mark, signaling a fundamental shift in how European investors view AI infrastructure as a strategic priority.