On November 3, Sydney-based data center operator IREN announced a $9.7 billion cloud services deal with tech giant Microsoft, granting Microsoft access to NVIDIA GB300 chips housed at IREN's Texas data center over the next five years. The agreement aims to ease Microsoft's compute capacity shortage and help it capitalize on the ongoing AI boom.

According to IREN's official statement, the company plans to gradually deploy GB300 processors across its 750 MW data campus in Childress, Texas, starting in 2026. As part of the deal, Microsoft will provide a 20% upfront payment, which will help fund IREN's $5.8 billion purchase agreement with Dell Technologies for GPUs and related equipment. However, if IREN fails to meet the payment schedule, the contract with Microsoft could be terminated.

IREN CEO Daniel Roberts said via email that once the deal is fully implemented, it could generate around $1.94 billion in annualized revenue, utilizing about 10% of IREN's total capacity. This leaves room for the company to secure additional partnerships and expand revenue streams.

"We've always seen hyperscale enterprises as natural partners," Roberts noted. “We're in active discussions with several of them, and as their computing demands scale alongside our AI cloud capabilities, those conversations are moving faster.”

Following the announcement, IREN's shares surged over 28% in U.S. premarket trading, while Dell rose about 4%, and Microsoft remained steady.