Nvidia-backed Firmus plans 170,000-GPU Batam AI data centre

• Firmus plans a 360MW Batam AI data centre with DayOne and Nvidia infrastructure.
• The project targets AI-native firms as Firmus expands its Australia data centre plans.

Firmus Technologies is preparing its first data centre project in Indonesia through a partnership involving Nvidia and Singapore-based DayOne, marking the Australian AI infrastructure company’s entry into Batam.

The project will involve a 360MW AI factory campus using Nvidia infrastructure on the Indonesian island, which sits near Singapore. DayOne is already constructing the facility, according to Firmus co-chief executive Tim Rosenfield, who spoke to Bloomberg News.

Batam project targets AI cloud customers

Batam is near Singapore, where the Infocomm Media Development Authority has set out a Green Data Centre Roadmap targeting at least 300MW of additional data-centre capacity in the near term, with more capacity tied to green energy deployments.

DayOne is building the Indonesian facilities, while Firmus will rent space to install Nvidia chips. The project will have an energy capacity of 360MW, and Firmus plans to fund its operations through an undisclosed mix of equity and debt, the Financial Review reported.

The International Energy Agency said data centres used about 415TWh of electricity in 2024, or around 1.5% of global electricity consumption, and projected that figure to rise to about 945TWh by 2030.

The site is scheduled to begin operations in the first quarter of 2027. Firmus said the project forms part of an eight-year partnership with Nvidia.

Nvidia deal covers 170,000 GPUs

Nvidia describes DSX as an AI factory-scale platform for design, simulation, operations, and partner technologies. It has described AI factories as infrastructure for AI training, fine-tuning, and inference.

Under the agreement, Firmus will buy Nvidia infrastructure and sell access to Nvidia-powered cloud services to AI-native customers and other users. The arrangement gives Nvidia product revenue and a share of cloud revenue, Reuters reported.

The deal covers the delivery of 170,000 graphics processing units from the first quarter of 2027 to the start of 2028. The GPUs will be located in Batam, Indonesia.

Firmus said it expects to generate up to US$30 billion in revenue during the first six years of the agreement. The company said the forecast is based on committed customer agreements.

The Batam campus differs from Firmus’ Australian projects, which are aimed at hyperscaler customers. Rosenfield said the Indonesian facility will be a multi-tenant project serving AI-native customers.

The customer base will also differ by market. Firmus’ Australian projects are aimed at hyperscalers, including large technology companies such as Meta and Amazon Web Serviceswhile the Batam project will focus on AI-native customers using cloud services.

In this context, AI-native customers refer to companies whose products or services depend heavily on AI computing capacity.

Firmus said the project is intended to make AI infrastructure more accessible to smaller and developing AI companies. Rosenfield told Reuters that Firmus had been working on ways to narrow the cost gap between large companies with strong credit ratings and emerging AI firms.

“This is actually a really material way to level the playing field a little bit to give the next a chance to compete with the big guys,” he said.

The firm expands beyond Australia

Firmus was founded by Rosenfield and his cousin, Oliver Curtis, in 2019 as a start-up developing cooling technology for chips used in cryptocurrency mining. The company moved further into data centre capacity in 2023.

Firmus says its modular HyperCube system uses 30% less energy and 99% less water than comparable systems. The system uses liquid immersion cooling to manage chip heat and reduce reliance on large air-conditioning systems.

Nvidia has participated in Firmus’ previous capital raisings, making it an investor in the Australian-founded company, according to Firmus.

Firmus said in April that it had raised US$1.35 billion over the previous six months, giving it a US$5.5 billion post-money valuation. Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that the company has appointed investment banks to work on a possible initial public offering. Rosenfield declined to comment on its IPO preparations.

According to the Financial ReviewFirmus is also planning a listing on the Australian Securities Exchange that could value the company at up to A$12 billionalthough the company has pushed back those plans from June and declined to discuss its progress.

Firmus has also been expanding its Australian data centre pipeline. In 2025, it signed an agreement with CDC Data Centers to develop up to 1.6GW of data centres across Australia by 2028, using Nvidia chips.

Rosenfield said the Indonesia project would not delay Firmus’ plans in Australia. The company is planning AI factory projects in Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory.

The company has previously said the Southgate project under that partnership has secured an unnamed global hyperscaler customer. Rosenfield declined to identify the customer.

Data centre scrutiny grows

Australia’s Senate has launched an inquiry into data centres. The Financial Review also reported that Firmus has faced local questions over energy use, water consumption, noise, waste, and site selection at proposed AI factory projects in Tasmania.

The IEA has said AI-focused data centres can create local electricity impacts because facilities are often concentrated in specific markets.

Rosenfield said Firmus was planning its projects for industrial and regional areas, rather than near homes. He said “social licence” and operating transparently were important to earning trust.

DayOne is backed by US technology investment group Coatue Management and Japan’s SoftBank. The company is developing the Batam facilities that Firmus will use for the Nvidia-powered cloud services.

Rosenfield said Firmus was building its business around customer demand and contracts it had closed. “Funding and capital remains extremely strong, as we speak,” he said.

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