Elon Musk's xAI in Talks with Saudi Firm Humain for Massive Data Center Deal

Musk's xAI in Talks With Saudi Firm Humain on Data Center Deal

Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup, xAI, is in discussions to lease data center capacity in Saudi Arabia, according to people familiar with the matter, part of an effort to expand its infrastructure in regions offering cheap energy and political goodwill. The company is in early talks with two potential partners: Humain, a Saudi-backed artificial intelligence firm offering xAI several gigawatts of capacity, and another company building a smaller but more immediately available 200-megawatt facility, the people said, asking not to be named discussing private talks.

XAI in talks to lease data center capacity in Saudi Arabia, Bloomberg News reports

July 16 (Reuters) - Elon Musk's xAI is in discussions to lease data center capacity in Saudi Arabia, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, as part of an effort to expand its infrastructure in regions offering cheap energy and political goodwill. The startup is in discussion with two firms: Humain, a Saudi-backed AI company offering xAI several gigawatts of capacity, and another company building a smaller but more immediately available 200-megawatt facility, according to the report. The Humain proposal remains distant, Bloomberg said, as the startup launched by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund is yet to break ground on much of the infrastructure it has pledged to build. The other company, which Bloomberg did not name, is already working on the 200-megawatt facility, making it a more realistic short-term option for xAI, the report said. XAI and Humain did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Sahal Muhammed Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Musk's xAI to Rent Data Centre Capacity in Saudi Firm Humain: Report | AIM

While the collaboration could enhance xAI's infrastructure for advanced model training, it is still in the early stages. Elon Musk's AI startup, xAI, is currently in talks to rent data centre capacity in Saudi Arabia, Bloomberg reported, citing sources. The move is part of the company's strategy to improve its infrastructure in regions with low energy costs and favourable political conditions. According to Bloomberg, the firm is in preliminary discussions with two potential partners: Humain, a Saudi-funded AI company providing xAI with several gigawatts of capacity, and another organisation which is constructing a smaller, yet more readily available 200-megawatt facility. Despite being backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, the company has reportedly not yet begun construction on the infrastructure it has committed to developing. Any collaboration with xAI would provide Musk with future computing resources, rather than being an immediate solution. The AI startup has been increasing its data centre capacity to train more sophisticated models, aiming to compete more vigorously with OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude. Its supercomputer cluster in Memphis, Tennessee, known as Colossus, is regarded as the largest in the world. Leading tech companies are projected to invest $320 billion in AI this year, with both Meta and CoreWeave announcing substantial expenditures on AI data centres this week. Within Humain, a technical team led by Jeff Thomas, is tasked with constructing the data centre infrastructure, whereas Saeed Al-Dobas manages the commercial negotiations. According to the report, the project may be linked to Saudi Arabia's previous investment in xAI, which was part of a broader initiative by Saudi royal Alwaleed bin Talal to strengthen connections between the kingdom and Musk's enterprises. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is expected to be a significant player as xAI seeks to secure additional funding from investors in a transaction that could value between $170 billion and $200 billion, according to the Financial Times.

Musk's xAI in talks with Saudi firm Humain on data center deal - The Economic Times

The company is in early talks with two potential partners: Humain, a Saudi-backed artificial intelligence firm offering xAI several gigawatts of capacity, and another company building a smaller but more immediately available 200-megawatt facility.Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup, xAI, is in discussions to lease data center capacity in Saudi Arabia, according to people familiar with the matter, part of an effort to expand its infrastructure in regions offering cheap energy and political goodwill. The company is in early talks with two potential partners: Humain, a Saudi-backed artificial intelligence firm offering xAI several gigawatts of capacity, and another company building a smaller but more immediately available 200-megawatt facility, the people said, asking not to be named discussing private talks. The Humain proposal, while massive in ambition, remains distant. While the AI company is backed by Saudi's Public Investment Fund, the firm has yet to break ground on much of the infrastructure it's pledged to build. Any arrangement with xAI would offer Musk computing resources years down the road instead of being a near-term solution. By contrast, the other potential partner is already working on a 200-megawatt facility, one of the people said, making it a more realistic short-term option for xAI. In both cases, xAI would not own the facilities but instead rent capacity -- essentially leasing space in the data centers to power its compute-intensive AI models. Representatives for Elon Musk, xAI and Humain didn't respond to requests for comment. AI companies like xAI, OpenAI and Meta Platforms Inc. are building or leasing massive data centers to train and run the AI models that power chatbots, like xAI's Grok. Those data centers are expensive to build and operate and use immense amounts of power. If Humain succeeds in developing a multi-gigawatt data center, it would likely be one of the largest in the world. A one gigawatt facility, for example, consumes the same amount of energy used to power nearly 900,000 homes annually, according to Carbon Collective. Inside Humain, a technical team led by Jeff Thomas is responsible for building the data center infrastructure, while commercial negotiations are being handled by Saeed Al-Dobas. The project may tie back to Saudi Arabia's earlier investment in xAI, which was part of a broader effort by Saudi royal Alwaleed bin Talal to deepen ties between the kingdom and Musk's ventures. The potential Saudi move fits a broader trend for Musk, who is exploring infrastructure for xAI where power is cheap and capital is abundant, one of the people said. The exploration comes amid heightened geopolitical and commercial tensions in the US, where Musk has clashed with lawmakers and regulators despite spending much of this year closely advising President Donald Trump. Musk has already built a massive data center facility in Memphis, which houses a supercomputer called Colossus, and has publicly teased plans for a second facility nearby. Musk and xAI recently closed a $10 billion funding round split equally between equity and debt, and Musk posted on his X social platform last week that the startup has "plenty of capital." But the mechanics of how and where it deploys that capital are still taking shape. Internally, xAI founding team member and former Tesla Inc. employee Ross Nordeen is driving these infrastructure negotiations, functioning as xAI's key dealmaker and strategist for location and scale, according to people familiar with the company. While former Tesla and X executive Andree Jacobson is helping lead the technical side at xAI, Nordeen is widely seen as the "Omead" figure inside xAI -- a reference to former Tesla employee and Musk confidant Omead Afshar. The xAI team is also considering the UAE for data center deals has been in contact with Abu Dhabi-based AI firm G42, one of the people said. G42 declined to comment. The company has weighed data center deals in some countries in Africa as well that have access to cheaper energy and operating costs, two of the people said. Still, Saudi Arabia's abundance of sovereign wealth and access to specialized chips make it the most attractive option, two of the people said.