Nebius vs Nscale

Palantir and Nebius partner to deliver a complete sovereign AI stack to Palantir customers

Nebius announces a strategic partnership with Palantir to deliver a complete sovereign AI stack, along with several major financial announcements including a $5.75 billion convertible senior notes offering and participation in upcoming investor conferences.

Neoclouds: New Bets on AI Infrastructure

The article analyzes the rise of Neoclouds, a new class of cloud providers specializing in GPU compute rental for AI workloads. It reports that the sector generated over $25 billion in revenue in 2025, with a projected CAGR of 58% to reach $400 billion by 2031. Key players include CoreWeave, Nebius, Together AI, SpaceX, Nscale, Crusoe, and Lambda. The piece highlights significant contracts with Microsoft, Meta, and Anthropic, as well as funding rounds and IPO activity. It also discusses risks such as heavy debt, depreciation, and customer concentration, exemplified by Meta's potential entry into cloud services, which caused stock drops for several Neoclouds.

• The Neocloud sector generated over $25 billion in revenue in 2025.
• CoreWeave's order backlog reached $99.4 billion in March 2026.
• Nebius revenue grew 684% year-over-year in Q1 2026 to $399 million.

EU Proposes Data Center Label to Measure AI Energy, Water Use

The European Commission has proposed a mandatory sustainability rating for data centers in the EU, aiming to make energy and water consumption comparable, similar to household appliance energy labels. Based on Article 33 of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive, the rating would apply to data centers with installed IT capacity of 500 kW or above, evaluating Power Usage Effectiveness, Water Usage Effectiveness, and renewable energy share, with stricter rules for green power claims. Labels would be generated automatically, updated annually, and made publicly accessible, with the first round planned for 2027. The article highlights rising data center energy demand—IEA projects global consumption to more than double to around 945 TWh by 2030—and discusses interim power solutions including gas turbines and nuclear/SMR investments. It also covers research by Silicon Austria Labs into energy-efficient AI hardware accelerators based on RISC-V and on-device AI to reduce data center load.

• European Commission proposes mandatory data center sustainability rating based on Article 33 of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive.
• Rating applies to data centers with installed IT capacity of 500 kilowatts or more; smaller centers can opt in.
• Metrics include PUE, WUE, and share of renewable energy, with stricter rules for green power certificates.

AI cloud provider Nscale files for NYSE IPO

Nscale, a cloud provider specializing in AI infrastructure, has filed for an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker 'NSCL'. The company, spun out of cryptocurrency mining firm Arkon Energy, reported $140.6 million in revenue for the first half of 2026, up 1252% year-over-year, with a net loss of $1.02 billion. Nscale has secured major customers including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Microsoft, and plans to acquire Anyscale. The company has over 1,000 employees and significant GPU capacity, with investors including Nvidia, Dell, and Fidelity. The IPO filing highlights the growing demand for AI computing power and the emergence of 'neocloud' providers.

• Nscale filed for IPO on NYSE under ticker NSCL.
• Revenue in H1 2026 was $140.6 million, up 1252% year-over-year.
• Net loss in H1 2026 was $1.02 billion.

Nscale Adds Former OpenAI Exec Fidji Simo to Board

Nscale, a UK-based AI data center startup, has appointed Fidji Simo, former No. 2 executive at OpenAI and ex-CEO of Instacart, to its board of directors. Simo, who left OpenAI in July 2026 citing health reasons, brings extensive experience scaling products for billions of users. She joins other high-profile board members including Sheryl Sandberg, Susan Decker, and Nick Clegg. The appointment comes as Nscale reportedly seeks up to $3.5 billion in pre-IPO financing, with a potential IPO expected this fall. Nscale designs, builds, and operates AI data centers, and its valuation has surged due to high demand for AI infrastructure.

• Nscale appointed Fidji Simo to its board of directors.
• Simo previously served as CEO of AGI deployment at OpenAI and led Instacart through its 2023 IPO.
• Nscale is reportedly seeking up to $3.5 billion in pre-IPO financing.

Portugal's Innovation Ecosystem Struggles to Match Growth Narrative

Portugal's tech ecosystem is receiving significant political attention, highlighted by European Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva's high-level visit in July 2026. While the country leads the EU's "widening" member states under Horizon Europe with €1.3 billion in secured funding, the European Innovation Scoreboard 2026 still labels Portugal as a Moderate Innovator. Efforts to decentralize innovation away from Lisbon have seen Porto emerge as a major research hub, recognized by the European Commission's Innovation Radar. Meanwhile, Alentejo's Sines industrial area is developing into a critical digital infrastructure hub, attracting over €25 billion in investment including Nscale's €695 million expansion of the SINES Data Campus alongside Microsoft and Start Campus. However, tech leaders caution that physical data center infrastructure does not automatically translate to a sustainable startup ecosystem, emphasizing the need for talent retention and commercialization.

• Portugal has secured €1.3 billion in funding under the Horizon Europe program.
• The European Innovation Scoreboard 2026 classifies Portugal as a Moderate Innovator, performing below the EU average.
• The University of Porto was recognized as a Key Innovator by the European Commission for 13 EU-funded projects worth €26 million.