Nscale’s £2B AI Data Centre To Create Jobs

In an effort to establish the largest artificial intelligence (AI) data centre in the United Kingdom, Nscale committed £2 billion to construct and open the ground-breaking facility in Loughton, Essex, and to generate up to 750 jobs in a town by 2026.

Described as an “important opportunity” for the community, the announcement was praised by Councillor Stephen Murray.

This action followed the government’s announcement of aspirations to lead the world in artificial intelligence (AI) in order to accelerate growth and improve service delivery.

The data centre, which would be the first of its kind in Essex, was scheduled to be constructed on Langston Road.

A month after our Series A announcement, Nscale bring more news. We are investing £2 billion in the UK data centre industry over the next three years, aligning with the UK Government’s AI Opportunities Action Plan.

Having purchased our first UK data centre site in Loughton, this… pic.twitter.com/FKlvP0PkfR

— Nscale (@nscale_cloud) January 13, 2025

Murray, an Independent on Epping Forest District Council, said, “Keeping Loughton at the forefront of AI plans is important for all our futures. Urging very careful and detailed consideration” by authorities in the region.

According to Nscale, it wanted to “stimulate the UK economy” by attracting commercial investment and kick-starting AI use.

During construction, 500 jobs would be created, and 250 more would be required to run the centre.

The company’s chief operating officer, Alex Sharp, stated that the four-acre location will help defence and healthcare services.

“We are very delighted to be included in that. It’s great news for the area,” he continued.

“We’ll be developing a 50 MW data centre, which creates a lot of construction jobs. People have to run the facility as well.”

During its announcement this week, the government revealed £14bn had been pledged by technology companies across the UK.

Dr. Haider Raza, a senior AI lecturer at the University of Essex, said: “It’s going to make a huge impact in public sectors.”

BBC/Chidimma Gold