Fluidstack, a startup specializing in building bespoke data centers for artificial intelligence firms, is reportedly in advanced talks to secure a $1 billion funding round at an eye-watering valuation of $18 billion. Should this deal materialize, it would more than double Fluidstack’s worth in just months.

The hype around Fluidstack grew when Anthropic, the company behind language model Claude, inked a massive $50 billion deal with the firm to construct custom data centers for its needs in Texas and New York. Unlike cloud giants like AWS that cater to diverse computing needs, Fluidstack’s infrastructure is tailored specifically for AI.

Fluidstack's strategic shift from Europe to New York signals an ambitious push into U.S. markets, while it pulled out of a significant €10 billion AI project in France to focus on opportunities closer to home. The company has already secured customers including Meta and Poolside, and is best known for providing infrastructure to Mistral.

As AI companies compete fiercely for both talent and resources, Fluidstack stands at the forefront of this new frontier, offering specialized solutions that could define the future of AI computing. But only time will tell if its ambitious plans come to fruition.