BT, Nscale, and Nvidia Announce UK Sovereign AI Partnership
April 23, 2026 - 8:47 am
Nscale will construct the data centres at existing BT infrastructure sites; BT will provide connectivity. Both companies are founding members of the new UK Sovereign AI Industry Forum. The deal deepens Nscale’s position as a central plank of the UK government’s national AI infrastructure strategy.
Key Points:
- Partnership Details: BT Group and Nscale are collaborating to deliver sovereign AI data centres in the UK using Nvidia’s full-stack AI infrastructure.
- Capacity: Nscale will build up to 14 megawatts of AI data centre capacity across three existing strategic BT sites in the UK.
- Infrastructure: BT will provide the underlying infrastructure and connectivity for these sites, leveraging its ownership of the UK's fixed telecommunications network through Openreach.
- Strategic Advantage: The partnership allows Nscale to co-locate AI data centres with BT network exchange and switching sites, achieving low latency and avoiding greenfield build costs.
- Monetization: For BT, this partnership offers a new commercial AI revenue stream from existing infrastructure repurposed for AI compute.
Nscale’s Rapid Growth and Notable Investors:
- Founded in 2024, Nscale has grown swiftly to become a leading player in the UK’s AI infrastructure development.
- In March 2026, they secured $2 billion in Series C funding, valuing the company at $14.6 billion. Notable investors include Nvidia, Aker ASA, Citadel, Dell, Nokia, Jane Street, and Point72.
- Nvidia’s previous investment of £500 million in September 2025 recognized Nscale as a “national champion for the UK.”
- Nscale's board includes prominent figures such as Sheryl Sandberg (former Meta COO), Nick Clegg (former UK Deputy Prime Minister), and Susan Decker (former Yahoo President).
Prior Collaborative Efforts:
- In September 2025, Nscale, Nvidia, and OpenAI announced Stargate UK, an infrastructure platform for sovereign AI workloads using Nvidia Blackwell Ultra GPUs in Nscale’s UK data centres.
- Nscale is also building the UK's largest AI supercomputer (50MW scalable to 90MW) on its AI Campus in Loughton, Essex, alongside Microsoft.