UK-based AI infrastructure hyperscaler Nscale announced its $2 billion in Series C funding, led by Aker ASA and 8090 Industries. Nscale also reached an agreement with Aker to roll the Aker Nscale joint venture fully into Nscale and also welcomed three new high-profile directors to its board.
This round values Nscale at $14.6 billion and was supported by Astra Capital Management, Citadel, Dell, Jane Street, Lenovo, Linden Advisors, Nokia, NVIDIA, and Point72.
“This is the fourth industrial revolution; the world is changing at a rapid pace. Over the next 5 years, Artificial Intelligence will be integrated into every industry, every product, and every job. Accelerating drug discovery, extending human life, autonomizing travel and robotics, lifting productivity, and driving massive growth. This is leading to the largest infrastructure buildout in human history,” said Josh Payne, CEO and Founder of Nscale. “Nscale is leading this buildout. We are building this foundation that the market sits on, the engine of superintelligence.”
Agreement with Aker
Nscale has also reached an agreement with Aker to roll the Aker Nscale joint venture – announced in July 2025 – fully into Nscale. Going forward, Aker will remain a leading shareholder in Nscale with its CEO Øyvind Eriksen continuing to serve on the Nscale Board. Upon completion of the roll up, Nscale (directly or through affiliates) will own 100% of the joint venture company, and the joint venture agreement will terminate. Following completion, Aker's ownership in Nscale is expected to increase from 9.3% to about 27.3%.
Øyvind Eriksen, President and CEO of Aker ASA said, “This step strengthens execution by putting delivery and governance under one roof, while keeping continuity for the people and projects already underway. We have full confidence in Nscale’s ability to deliver responsibly in Norway over the long term, and we believe this positions the work for faster progress and durable value creation.”
Strengthening Nscale’s Board
Nscale also welcomed three new directors. Sheryl Sandberg (former Meta COO), Susan Decker, (former President of Yahoo) and Nick Clegg (former UK Deputy Prime Minister and former President of Global Affairs at Meta) will join the Nscale Board.
Rayyan Islam, the Co-founder and General Partner of 8090 Industries said, “We are living through a new era defined by AI, and the limiting factor is infrastructure. Compute, energy, and industrial-scale deployment capacity will determine which nations and companies lead the next generation of technological and economic progress. Nscale has built a platform uniquely capable of solving this challenge by vertically integrating the critical layers of AI infrastructure — from energy and data centers to compute and orchestration. At 8090 Industries, we invest in the systems that enable entire industries to scale and are proud to partner with Josh and the Nscale team as they build the foundational backbone for the global AI economy."
