Wes Cummins, CEO of Applied Digital, discusses the completion of a purpose-built data center in North Dakota designed for Nvidia infrastructure, with initial revenue expected from the first building in Q4 and the second by mid-2024. He highlights the region’s low costs, renewable energy, and cold climate as key factors attracting hyperscalers, with plans to expand beyond CoreWeave to other large cloud providers, emphasizing the site’s strategic growth potential.
In the video, Wes Cummins, CEO of Applied Digital, discusses the recent milestone of completing a purpose-built data center in Ellenell, North Dakota, designed specifically for Nvidia infrastructure and GPU operations. This development marks the culmination of two years of dedicated effort and signifies a significant step forward for the company’s expansion plans in the region. The facility’s construction and leasing agreements are seen as a positive achievement, but Cummins emphasizes that this is just the beginning of a larger campus development.
The first building, which has a capacity of 100 megawatts of critical IT load, is expected to start generating revenue in the fourth quarter of this year. The second building, planned to be similar in size and capacity, is projected to begin contributing revenue by the end of the second quarter of the following year. These timelines highlight the company’s strategic approach to scaling operations and monetizing their infrastructure investments gradually.
Cummins also addresses the potential for expanding beyond CoreWeave, the primary tenant, to include other hyperscalers and large cloud service providers. He notes that the company’s focus has traditionally been on hyperscalers for such large-scale campuses, with CoreWeave being a key partner. However, there is significant interest from other hyperscalers in the region, driven by the favorable conditions in North Dakota.
The region’s low power costs, abundant renewable energy, and cold climate are key factors attracting interest from potential clients. These advantages enable more efficient and cost-effective data center operations, making the Dakotas an appealing location for hyperscalers seeking to optimize their infrastructure. The company is actively capitalizing on these regional benefits to attract additional tenants and expand its ecosystem.
Overall, Wes Cummins highlights the strategic importance of the North Dakota campus as a major growth initiative for Applied Digital. The project leverages regional advantages to attract hyperscalers and build a scalable, efficient data center infrastructure. The upcoming revenue milestones and the potential for further tenant diversification underscore the company’s optimistic outlook for continued expansion and success in the region.