IREN secures Microsoft acceptance for first 50MW AI cloud deployment

Microsoft has formally accepted Horizon 1, the first phase of IREN Limited’s AI cloud deployment under a five-year contract worth approximately $9.7 billion. The milestone means IREN’s purpose-built liquid-cooled data center in Childress, Texas, is on track to deliver 50 MW of IT load by Q4 2025. Inside the deal The contract, first announced on November 3, 2025, commits Microsoft to purchasing dedicated GPU cloud services powered by NVIDIA’s GB300 GPUs across IREN’s Texas campus. The deployment is structured in four phases, labeled Horizon 1 through 4, with full buildout expected to reach 200 MW of total capacity by the end of 2026. At full scale, IREN projects the arrangement will generate roughly $1.94 billion in annual recurring revenue. Microsoft’s financial commitment goes beyond a handshake. The tech giant is providing a 20% upfront payment on the contract, a prepayment structure that gives IREN significant capital to fund the buildout. On the hardware side, IREN has locked in a separate purchase agreement with Dell Technologies valued at approximately $5.8 billion. Dell will supply the infrastructure needed to house NVIDIA’s GB300 GPUs in liquid-cooled, Tier III-equivalent d...