Crusoe Energy, an emerging company focused on building data centers for large enterprises such as Oracle, Microsoft and OpenAI, is in the process of raising up to $818 million in a financing round and has raised $686 million so far. The financing attracted participation from 70 investors and is expected to be completed at a price higher than the previous valuation of US$3 billion. The company started out as a cryptocurrency company that used natural gas to generate electricity that would otherwise have been wasted, and has now transformed into an artificial intelligence infrastructure provider and has partnered with several AI companies. This huge financing reflects the booming market demand in the fields of AI and cloud computing, as well as investors’ strong confidence in Crusoe’s future development.
Crusoe Energy is in the process of raising $818 million in financing and has raised $686 million so far.
The company has transformed from cryptocurrency to an AI infrastructure provider and has cooperated with many large enterprises.
Picture source note: The picture is generated by AI, and the picture authorization service provider Midjourney
Earlier this year, Crusoe was reportedly in talks to raise approximately $500 million from Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, with participation from Felicis Ventures. The company is expected to raise the capital at a higher price than its previous valuation of $3 billion, due to investor interest in a larger financing amount. If Crusoe successfully raises $818 million, it will bring its total funding to approximately $1.5 billion, including previous debt financing.
Crusoe was founded in 2018 as a cryptocurrency company whose data centers use natural gas to generate electricity that would otherwise be incinerated and wasted. With the rise of artificial intelligence, Crusoe has gradually transformed and reached agreements with multiple AI companies to provide high-performance computing and AI infrastructure. Recently, the company announced a US$3.4 billion joint venture agreement with asset management company Blue Owl Capital to build a large data center in Abilene, Texas, which is expected to be leased to Oracle and then provided to Microsoft and its partners PartnerOpenAI uses.
Against the background of the rapid development of AI and cloud computing, the market demand for "new cloud" start-ups has surged. For example, GPU infrastructure provider CoreWeave currently has a whopping $12.7 billion in available funding. Other companies such as Lambda Labs and Together AI have also received significant funding, further promoting the development of this field. However, the environmental impact of such large-scale construction cannot be ignored, with IDC predicting that global data center electricity consumption will double between 2023 and 2028, while Morgan Stanley says data center technology suppliers will Emissions equivalent to 2.5 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide will be produced.
Crusoe CEO Chase Lochmiller said in a recent interview that although there are concerns about AI's energy consumption, AI itself can be the key to solving this problem. He believes that AI will drive scientific breakthroughs and achieve a low-cost, sustainable energy future.
Highlight:
Crusoe Energy is in the process of raising $818 million in financing and has raised $686 million so far.
The company has transformed from cryptocurrency to an AI infrastructure provider and has cooperated with many large enterprises.
Data center construction has a significant impact on the environment, and the industry is gradually paying more attention to sustainable development.
All in all, Crusoe Energy's huge financing and its efforts in sustainable energy provide a new perspective on the construction of artificial intelligence infrastructure and also indicate the huge potential for future development in this field, but at the same time, it needs to pay attention to its impact on the environment. and proactively seek sustainable solutions.