Nscale, Microsoft, and NVIDIA Forge Alliance for Multi-Gigawatt AI Data Center Campus in West Virginia
March 17, 2026
In a significant move to address the soaring global demand for artificial intelligence computing power, infrastructure developer Nscale has announced a major collaboration with Microsoft and NVIDIA to build a massive AI data center campus in West Virginia. The project underscores the critical industry shift towards dedicated, power-intensive infrastructure capable of supporting the next generation of large-scale AI models.
The planned facility, named the Monarch Compute Campus, will be constructed on a site spanning up to 2,250 acres in Mason County, which Nscale acquired through its purchase of AIP Corp. Central to the project is a letter of intent with Microsoft for 1.35 gigawatts of AI compute capacity. The campus is designed as a flagship deployment for NVIDIA’s upcoming Vera Rubin GPUs, utilizing NVL72 systems engineered with the NVIDIA Vera Rubin DSX AI Factory reference design. Nscale will be responsible for building and operating the underlying data center infrastructure to host this deployment.
The development is structured in phases, with the first deliveries scheduled to begin in late 2027. Upon full build-out, the campus has the potential to reach a total power capacity of eight gigawatts, positioning it among the world’s largest dedicated AI compute environments. It will operate under a long-term framework combining a multi-year compute services agreement with a data center lease. A defining feature of the location is what is described as the United States' first state-certified AI microgrid, enabling on-site power generation and independence from the local utility grid.
"This collaboration with Microsoft marks a pivotal milestone both for Nscale and the development of the Monarch Campus," said Josh Payne, CEO of Nscale. "By integrating our specialized AI infrastructure with Microsoft’s global platform, we are creating a foundation for innovation that can scale alongside the most ambitious AI models in the world."
The project reflects the industry's urgent need for power-dense infrastructure, with forecasts suggesting AI-related data center capacity could reach 156 gigawatts by 2030. To ensure reliable and rapid power delivery, Nscale is partnering with Caterpillar to deploy G3500 series natural gas generator sets, scaling to two gigawatts of on-site generation by the first half of 2028. This strategy is crucial for meeting AI capacity demands that often outpace traditional infrastructure timelines.
"Microsoft’s datacenter approach is to build the best global infrastructure informed by near-term and long-term demand," stated Jon Tinter, President of Business Development and Ventures at Microsoft. "Our investments blend owned datacenters, leased facilities, and strategic collaborations. This collaboration with Nscale and NVIDIA is an important step to deliver meaningful AI innovation to our customers."
Nico Caprez, Vice President of Global AI Infrastructure Growth at NVIDIA, emphasized the project's scale: “AI is becoming essential infrastructure for every industry. With this large-scale NVIDIA DSX AI Factory Blueprint, Nscale is building the infrastructure required to produce intelligence at industrial scale and power the next wave of global innovation.”
Beyond raw compute power, the campus is designed with sustainability and community impact in mind. The microgrid design allows for future connection to the wider grid and potential export of surplus power. Nscale is also pursuing carbon sequestration initiatives and has adopted a high-efficiency design that minimizes water consumption and avoids drawing on municipal water supplies, ensuring local residents and services are unaffected.
With high-speed fiber links to major hubs like Ashburn and Chicago to reduce latency, the Monarch campus aims to be a comprehensive, sustainable, and performance-optimized environment for the most demanding AI training and inference workloads.
Source: datacentremagazine
