Nvidia weighs guaranteeing debt for Nscale's West Virginia data center serving Anthropic
The chipmaker would stand behind construction payments if Nscale defaulted, a sign of how hard the sector is working to keep spending on track.
Nvidia is reportedly negotiating to guarantee billions of dollars in debt for Nscale's planned data center in West Virginia, which would serve Anthropic, a move that would effectively see the chipmaker co-sign a customer's borrowing. Under the proposed structure, Nvidia would cover Nscale's construction payments if it defaulted, take temporary control of the site and find a new buyer or tenant. The stakes are high for Nscale, which is pursuing a public listing at a valuation of as much as $35 billion while facing doubts about delivering its projects, having run about 25,000 advanced chips in August against a plan of nearly 500,000. Anthropic has committed $44.6 billion for the first 460-megawatt building alone, and the companies are discussing a second deal of roughly $45 billion. The arrangement would show how hard the industry is working to keep infrastructure spending on track as investors grow wary of the sums involved.
Why it matters
The talks show that the cost of building AI data centers is pushing suppliers into roles usually held by lenders. If Nvidia takes on the guarantee, the risk of a stalled project would shift partly onto the chipmaker, not just the developer and its customer. For investors weighing Nscale's listing, the arrangement adds a question about how much of the project depends on outside backing, while Nscale's gap between chips running and chips planned keeps the delivery record in focus.
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