Nscale talks a second $45B, 460 MW Anthropic data center deal
A second 460 MW Monarch building would make Anthropic about 60% of Nscale's book. The first $44.6 billion contract still has no binding financing, and late tranches can be cancelled.
WIRE · NEOCLOUDS · US · Data as at 21 Oct 2026
Nscale is in talks to sell Anthropic a second block of AI computing worth about $45 billion, Bloomberg and Reuters reported on 19 October 2026. It would fill a second 460 MW building at Nscale's Monarch campus in Mason County, West Virginia, on Nvidia's Vera Rubin chips, next to the first building Anthropic signed for in August. On the neoclouds layer the headline is demand. The catch sits in Nscale's own prospectus: it has not yet lined up binding finance for the first $44.6 billion contract, and a late tranche can be cancelled without penalty.
What happened
19 October 2026 · Bloomberg and Reuters
Talks on a second Monarch building: about $45 billion, 460 MW, Vera Rubin
People familiar with the talks said a deal could be finalised in the coming days, details could change and no final decision has been made. Anthropic also holds a right of first refusal on Monarch's expected third building. Both companies declined to comment
25 August 2026 · Form S-1
The first deal: four agreements, up to $44.6 billion, about 460 MW over six years
Four tranches of Vera Rubin NVL72 systems, each paid only after Anthropic accepts it. Bloomberg reported in August that the chips start coming online late in 2027. Microsoft had first been lined up for part of Monarch and walked away in the summer, Bloomberg reported, which opened the door to Anthropic
18 to 20 October 2026 · The backdrop
Microsoft drops Nscale's London site, and neocloud shares slide
The Telegraph reported on 18 October that Microsoft pulled out of anchoring Nscale's site near London over grid delays. Nscale told CNBC it was a London-wide grid issue with no effect on its other contracts. CoreWeave and Nebius shares were down 28% and 27% over the past month, CNBC said
Why cash cares
A second building would make Nscale's order book look very different. Its prospectus counts $103.4 billion of signed contract value at 31 August, of which only $2.6 billion is running. Add a second $45 billion and the book reaches about $148 billion on our arithmetic. Anthropic alone would be about 60% of it, and Anthropic plus Microsoft about 90%. The running part would be under 2%.
The price per megawatt is the number lenders will look at. The first contract works out to about $97 million of revenue for each megawatt, or about $16 million a megawatt a year over six years (our arithmetic from the filing and Bloomberg's term). If the second building is priced the same, that is the cash Nscale has to set against the cost of the Vera Rubin racks, the building and the power.
Power is where the clock runs. Nscale plans 2 GW of gross power at Monarch by the first half of 2028, which it says is 1.37 GW of power for the computers themselves. Two Anthropic buildings would take 920 MW of that, about two thirds, before the third building Anthropic has first call on.
Figure: what a second Anthropic building does to Nscale's book and to Monarch's first phase. Contract values from Nscale's Form S-1. The second deal is reported, not signed. Shares and totals are our arithmetic.
The second-order read
Who gets paid. Nvidia first: both buildings are Vera Rubin NVL72 racks, bought up front before Anthropic pays a cent. Then whoever builds Monarch's on-site power, since the campus is planned around power generated on the site rather than drawn from the grid. Then the lenders, who can charge more while neocloud debt is under pressure.
Who carries the risk. Nscale. The filing says Anthropic may terminate any tranche delivered late without liability, and relief for supply chain delays is limited. A second contract on the same terms doubles the amount of hardware Nscale must finance and deliver on time.
Who waits. Anthropic gets capacity without owning the building or the debt. If Nscale slips, Anthropic can walk from that tranche and buy elsewhere. Its right of first refusal on a third building keeps the option open at little cost.
Stuck step. Financing, then power. As of its 18 September filing, Nscale had "not obtained binding commitments for any of the financings" needed for the first Anthropic contract. The first half of 2026 brought $140.6 million of revenue and a $1.02 billion net loss. The money for two buildings of Vera Rubin racks has to come from lenders and the IPO, not from cash the business already makes.
Two cautions
This is a deal in talks. Bloomberg and Reuters both say terms could change, and the 460 MW and $45 billion figures come from people familiar with the talks, not from either company.
The per-megawatt figures assume the second deal is priced and timed like the first. The first contract's six-year term comes from Bloomberg's August report. The filing gives the dollar value but not the megawatts.
What to watch
- An amended S-1. If the deal signs, Nscale's next filing should list a second set of Anthropic agreements, and say whether any lender has committed to either one.
- Lender names on Monarch. A project loan or private credit deal tied to the Anthropic tranches would be the first sign the build is funded.
- The first Vera Rubin tranche accepted, which Bloomberg put at late 2027, and Monarch's first power, which Nscale puts at the first half of 2028.
Read: What does Nscale do?, What is TCV?, Nscale's Arctic data center runs six months late and Microsoft drops the 23,000-GPU Essex site
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Not investment advice. Do your own research. The $148 billion book, the 60% and 90% shares, the revenue per megawatt and the share of Monarch's first phase are our arithmetic.
References
- Bloomberg via The Edge, "Nscale, Anthropic in talks for US$45 bil cloud computing deal", 20 Oct 2026. Talks, 460 MW, right of first refusal, Microsoft leaving Monarch.
- Reuters via KSL, "Nvidia-backed Nscale, Anthropic in talks for new $45 billion AI cloud deal, source says", 19 Oct 2026.
- CNBC, "Anthropic in talks with neocloud Nscale over second multibillion-dollar deal", 20 Oct 2026. London site, Nscale's comment, neocloud share moves.
- Nscale Ltd, Form S-1, 18 Sep 2026. Contract values, Anthropic terms, financing, Monarch power plan, first-half results.
- Bloomberg, "Anthropic to Pay Nscale $45 Billion for Computing", 26 Aug 2026. Six-year term, 460 MW, Vera Rubin timing.
