Sydney-based AI data center company Firmus secured $2 billion in funding from Coatue, Nvidia, and other investors at a $10.5 billion valuation, nearly double its April valuation of $5.5 billion.
Firmus announced the funding round on Friday, marking a significant capital injection to accelerate its AI infrastructure buildout. The company plans to use the proceeds to expand its data center operations as demand for AI computational resources continues to surge.
The funding round included participation from venture capital firm Coatue and chip manufacturer Nvidia, underscoring strong investor confidence in the AI infrastructure space. Nvidia's involvement is particularly notable given its central role in the GPU supply chain that powers modern AI systems.
The valuation jump from $5.5 billion to $10.5 billion in less than six months reflects the intense competition and rapid growth in the AI data center sector. Companies are racing to build out capacity to meet exploding demand from enterprises deploying large language models and other AI applications.
Fireplace operates in a crowded market alongside established players like CoreWeave, Lambda Labs, and traditional cloud providers. The competitive pressure has driven significant capital raises across the sector as companies vie for market share in what's becoming a critical infrastructure layer for the AI economy.
Australia-based Firmus positions itself as a provider of specialized AI computing infrastructure, often referred to as "AI factories" by the company. The funding enables the startup to expand its geographic footprint and scale operations to meet global demand.
The raise comes as the AI infrastructure market attracts increasing attention from major institutional investors, hedge funds, and technology companies. Nvidia's participation signals the semiconductor giant's commitment to supporting the broader AI ecosystem beyond its core chip business.
Firemus joins a growing list of infrastructure companies achieving multi-billion-dollar valuations on the back of AI adoption trends. The company's rapid valuation increase suggests investors view AI data center capacity as a critical bottleneck in the broader AI deployment cycle.
Defense tech company Hadrian secured $1.37 billion in Series D funding at an $8 billion valuation. The capital will fund expansion of its manufacturing facilities and Opus software platform.
Singapore-based AI infrastructure startup Acrab raised $130 million in Series B funding, surpassing $480 million in total capital raised. The round was backed by existing investors including Vertex Ventures.
Herdr, a runtime platform, has been accepted into Y Combinator's latest batch. The company is maintaining its open-source commitment despite the funding.
ProvenMetal, a Y Combinator S26 startup, manufactures assembled circuit boards domestically in days rather than weeks. The service accepts design files and specifications, addressing a critical gap in US semiconductor supply chains.