IREN Delivers First AI Cloud Batch to Microsoft Under $9.7B Deal
Former Bitcoin miner IREN has delivered the first of four AI cloud infrastructure batches to Microsoft.
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Key takeaways
- IREN completed its first AI cloud deployment for Microsoft under a $9.7 billion contract.
- The delivery is the first of four planned infrastructure rollouts for the tech giant.
- IREN aims for 480 MW of AI cloud capacity in 2026 and 1.2 GW by 2027 as it moves away from pure BTC mining.
IREN just turned the lights on for its first AI cloud deployment with Microsoft. That moves its $9.7 billion deal out of planning and into actual operation.
This is batch one of four. It marks a deliberate shift for the business, moving focus away from traditional Bitcoin mining to supply enterprise cloud infrastructure.
Scaling up to gigawatts
Grid access rules this market now. Running a mining facility requires huge electrical capacity and real estate—which happens to be precisely what tech firms need to train AI models. IREN is leveraging its power pipeline to capture that demand.
They aren't taking it slow. The company's aiming for 480 megawatts of active AI cloud capacity in 2026, then pushing that operational footprint to 1.2 gigawatts by 2027.
Why it matters
Bitcoin mining is a brutal business. Halvings squeeze margins, and volatility handles the rest. Long-term cloud contracts with giants like Microsoft offer stable, recurring cash flows instead. For anyone tracking crypto infrastructure, power capacity isn't just about generating hash rate anymore. It's turned into prime real estate for the AI boom.
Source: The Block
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Daniel tracks crypto regulation and policy across the US, EU and Asia, with a decade in financial journalism.
