Microsoft has abandoned a proposed artificial intelligence mega data center in the UK, in a blow to the country’s ambitions in the sector. The American tech giant committed last year to using computing power in the large data center that British start-up Nscale, backed by Nvidia, plans to build in Loughton, north-east London. But according to media reports, the electricity grid operator has announced that the site cannot be connected before the next decade.
“This decision concerns a single site”, specified a spokesperson for Microsoft, which remains “committed to the partnership with Nscale”, while the start-up assured that it wanted to move forward with the project by seeking alternative energy sources. The agreement was announced during President Donald Trump’s state visit to the Kingdom last year, along with billion-dollar investments from other American big tech companies, and the then Labor Prime Minister Keir Starmer had presented the Loughton project as “the largest sovereign AI data center” for the country.
Several similar projects remain held back by high electricity prices and long waiting times for connection to the grid.