Nscale meets investor resistance over its IPO valuation target

Nscale wants public markets to value it at up to $35 billion. According to Bloomberg, a number of investors are pushing back on that figure.

The London-based AI infrastructure company is trying to go public just as enthusiasm for AI build-outs is cooling, construction schedules are slipping, and rival listings are being shelved.

What Nscale is asking for

Nscale filed its S-1 registration statement with the US SEC on September 18, 2026. It plans to list on the NYSE under the ticker NSCL.

The company is looking to raise approximately $3 billion through new shares. Its valuation target reaches as high as $35 billion, although some reports put the figure closer to $30 billion.

That is a big step up from its last private price. Nscale was valued at $14.6 billion in its Series C round in March 2026, so the top of the target is roughly 2.4 times that mark.

Nscale can at least point to the quarter. First-half 2026 revenue came in at $140.6 million, compared with $10.4 million a year earlier, a 1,252% increase.

The filing showed a net loss of $1.02 billion, which means the company is spending heavily to reach a size that the revenue line has not yet caught up with.

The backlog problem

The bull case depends on Nscale’s contract book. The company reports about $103.4 billion in total contracted value, most of it tied to Microsoft and Anthropic.

Very little of it is producing revenue so far. As of late August, only around 2.5% of that contracted value was active.

Nscale’s Norwegian facility is running six months behind schedule, with 6.4 MW operational against a 30 MW target.

Microsoft pulled out of a planned UK data center project because of difficulties securing power.

Customer concentration is the other concern. With Microsoft and Anthropic holding most of the backlog, a change of plans at either could reshape Nscale’s revenue outlook. The company’s heavy debt load adds to that risk, since borrowing costs keep coming due whether or not the data centers open on time.

A tough room for AI listings

Several AI infrastructure IPOs have been canceled or postponed. Firmus abandoned its listing plans entirely.

Public comparables have not helped. CoreWeave, the best-known listed neocloud, has seen its shares fall roughly 15-25% amid the sector pullback. Calls from some industry leaders for a slowdown in AI development have also triggered sell-offs across related stocks.

A “neocloud” is a specialist provider that rents out GPU computing power for AI workloads, competing in a narrower lane than giants like Amazon or Microsoft.

The insurance policy investors already bought

On September 25, 2026, Nscale raised $3.36 billion through pre-IPO convertible notes.

Third Point led the round. Apollo, Citadel, and the Abu Dhabi Investment Council also participated, and Nvidia contributed $1 billion. Nvidia is also expected to supply GPUs for Nscale’s operations, so the chipmaker is both an investor and a supplier.

The notes convert into equity at a discount to the IPO price, and the conversion is capped at a $30 billion valuation.

The people behind it

Founder and CEO Josh Payne led Nscale’s spinout from Arkon Energy in 2024.

The board includes Nick Clegg, Sheryl Sandberg, and Susan Decker.

What this means

The $103.4 billion backlog is the reason Nscale can aim this high. The 2.5% activation rate, the Norway delay, and the Microsoft UK exit are the reasons investors are hesitating.

The convertible note cap gives a useful reference point. If the IPO prices near or below $30 billion, early noteholders are protected and new public shareholders absorb the adjustment.

With Firmus out and CoreWeave shares under pressure, the things to watch are the final price range, any updates on the Norwegian and UK sites, and whether Microsoft and Anthropic expand their active commitments before the shares start trading.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Diego Almada Lopez. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.