British AI data centre start-up Nscale has raised $2 billion (£1.5bn) in a Series C funding round that values it at $14.6bn, the company said, amid an ongoing surge in demand for AI infrastructure.

The round was led by Aker ASA and 8090 Industries, with Astra Capital Management, Citadel, Dell, Jane Street, Lenovo, Linden Advisors, Nokia, Nvidia and Point72 also participating.

Nscale also said that former Meta chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, former UK deputy prime minister Nick Clegg and former Yahoo president Susan Decker would join its board of directors.

Founded in 2024, Nscale has become a key player in the AI boom, with a vertically integrated stack ranging from AI accelerator chips to data centres to networking and data services and orchestration software.

The new capital, which includes a $433m pre-Series C SAFE round in October, is to be used to help build infrastructure in Europe, North America and Asia, the company said.

Nscale announced a $1.4bn delayed draw term loan in February and a $1.1bn Series B funding round last September.

The company did not disclose the valuation that accompanied the Series B round, but reports suggested the new valuation is more than double the previous confidential figure.

Nscale said in October it is planning an initial public offering.

The start-up operates facilities in the UK, the US, Norway, Portugal and Iceland with customers including Microsoft and OpenAI.