DriverAI Plans 80MW Quantum AI Data Center in Romania, Faces Skepticism Over Qualifications
June 11, 2026
DriverAI Plans 80MW Quantum AI Data Center in Romania, Faces Skepticism Over Qualifications
A US technology firm has announced plans to build an 80MW quantum AI data center in Romania, a project that has drawn both attention and criticism over the company’s apparent lack of prior experience in large-scale data center development. The facility, to be located in the county of Cluj, is part of a broader push to position Romania as a sovereign computing hub for central and eastern Europe.
DriverAI, an Arizona-based company specializing in AI-enabled situational awareness systems and hyperscale data center capacity, said the facility will be built on a 20-hectare (49-acre) site in an industrial park developed by Leviatan Group outside the village of Luna. Construction will proceed in four 20MW phases, with the building eventually hosting both GPUs and quantum computing hardware. Although no details were released about the quantum technology or the total project cost, a statement from Romania’s senate president Mircea Abrudean on Facebook indicated that $1 billion would be invested in the first phase alone.
“Our assessment visits to Luna and to the industrial and technological park developed by Leviatan Group confirmed what the data already suggested: Romania is uniquely positioned to become a sovereign compute hub for central and eastern Europe,” said DriverAI’s CEO, Cary Tatlinger. “The proximity to leading universities, the energy infrastructure, and the commitment of our Romanian partners make this the right location, at the right moment. We are committed to advancing this initiative as a priority.”
Power supply and project management expertise for the construction phase are being provided by infrastructure company E-INFRA and Cartens Consulting Global, respectively. DriverAI said it plans for the data center to be fully powered by renewable energy by the fourth phase of its construction. Once completed, students from the nearby Technical University of Cluj-Napoca and Babeș-Bolyai University will be granted access to the facility’s GPU and quantum computing resources.
Despite the ambitious scope, the announcement has faced skepticism from local industry figures. Software entrepreneur and Cluj native George Roth criticized the project, questioning whether DriverAI has the necessary credentials to undertake such a development. “The bigger the promise, the more important the verification,” Roth told Ziarul Financiar. “Romania should welcome serious investors… but it should not accept strategic technology announcements at their stated value.” Roth’s comments underscore a broader concern: DriverAI does not appear to have been involved in any data center development projects until now.
Currently, the data center market in Cluj County remains small, with DataCenterMap listing just eight operational facilities in the area. Last month, plans were also announced for a municipal data center in the city of Cluj-Napoca, though no details were released about its predicted compute power. If realized, the DriverAI project would represent a significant expansion of the region’s digital infrastructure, potentially attracting further investment and talent to the area. However, the company’s ability to deliver on its promises—and secure the trust of local stakeholders—remains an open question.
Source: datacenterdynamics
