Anthropic is expanding its infrastructure footprint in Australia, with the AI company signing its first data centre lease in the country, according to 2 people familiar with the agreement. The deal is supported by Australia’s renewable energy resources and favourable political environment.
The lease covers a data centre campus with a planned capacity of 2.16GW, putting it among the largest computing facilities in the world. The proposed site is located on farmland about 250km, or 150 miles, from Brisbane and is expected to begin coming online in 2027.
The agreement makes Anthropic the latest major AI company to secure data centre capacity in Australia. OpenAI signed an offtake agreement for a Sydney data centre last year as companies compete for land and power in the country. Australia is being positioned as a lower-cost alternative to more congested markets in the US and Asia, with access to renewable energy.
The development follows comments by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei last week calling on AI companies to slow the pace of model development amid concerns over potential misuse. Elon Musk, who leads rival xAI, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman backed the call. US President Donald Trump described AI critics as “very negative forces” who were raising scenarios that will not happen.
Australia’s government has faced community concerns over data centres’ use of land, water and electricity. It has promised to introduce restrictions from 2027 on resource use by data centres while continuing to encourage investment. Economists estimate the country’s data centre investment boom could reach A$150 billion, or $107 billion, by 2030.
The lease is for a facility being developed by Singapore-based Zerra DC. The developer would secure renewable power purchase agreements and cover grid connection costs without passing them on to existing customers, according to the sources. Anthropic and Zerra DC declined to comment.
The facility is planned for inference, or rapid prediction-based processing, rather than AI training. Australia has said its upcoming AI rules will limit the use of domestically produced content for training.
The site will also use a closed-loop, air-cooled system to reduce the need for clean water to cool servers. The agreement remains subject to Foreign Investment Review Board approval.
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