NVIDIA invests $683 million in Nscale, and encryption infrastructure is driving AI rise.

According to reports, the world's most valuable chip manufacturer, Nvidia, has pledged to invest $683 million in Nscale, a London-based AI infrastructure company that recently spun off from the crypto mining company Arkon Energy. This investment highlights how the legacy of encryption infrastructure is quietly powering the next wave of AI rise.

NVIDIA and encryption mining fundamentals jointly support AI ambitions

The collaboration between Nvidia and Nscale is said to bring about 60,000 GPUs to UK data centers by 2026. This move highlights the scale of Nvidia's investments and aligns with the UK's broader AI policy goals. Notably, the announcement comes at a time when political momentum is building under Prime Minister Keir Starmer's 50-point AI action plan. It also represents the rise of encryption infrastructure merging with traditional tech giants.

Microsoft and OpenAI have pledged to invest billions of dollars into AI parks in the UK, while Nvidia is positioning itself at the intersection of blockchain foundations and next-generation computing.

The origin of Nscale lies in the energy-intensive world of digital asset mining. Arkon Energy founded the company initially to provide infrastructure for encryption mining. In 2024, as the demand for computing power exceeded the returns from blockchain, the company turned to AI. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang emphasized the role of Nscale in UK infrastructure, stating that the company could become the "national champion of AI infrastructure in the UK."

Encryption mining lays the foundation for AI ambitions.

Once heavily criticized, encryption data centers are now being redeployed for mainstream AI infrastructure. CoreWeave originally operated as an Ethereum mining company in 2017 and now provides AI infrastructure for Microsoft, Google, Nvidia, and OpenAI. After shifting to AI workloads, it went public in 2025 with a market capitalization of about $58 billion. Similarly, Canadian Bitcoin miner Hut 8 has also expanded into high-performance computing services.

According to reports, on August 14, 2025, Google invested in TeraWulf, providing $1.8 billion to support its AI hosting protocol and obtained warrants for approximately 8% equity. This funding supports TeraWulf's Lake Mariner campus in New York. The campus is committed to providing over 200 megawatts of capacity under two ten-year contracts with Fluidstack. The revenue value of these agreements is approximately $3.7 billion, with optional extension clauses that could increase the total value to $8.7 billion.

The Integration of Sovereign AI and Blockchain Legacy

Europe's call for "sovereign AI" resonates with the long-standing debates in the encryption field regarding decentralization and self-custody. Just as miners seek independence from centralized finance, governments are now looking to reduce their reliance on foreign mega-corporations. Prime Minister Starmer described these announcements as a turning point: "The UK can maintain its leadership in the AI field just as it has in nurturing fintech and digital assets."

Nscale plans to deploy 300,000 NVIDIA GPUs by 2030, indicating that blockchain infrastructure is powering the future of AI.

Conclusion

The infrastructure for encryption mining is undergoing transformation and is becoming a new pillar of the AI industry. Although investments from tech giants like Nvidia and Google depict an exciting future for these projects, any investment decision should be based on a comprehensive assessment of the market and company fundamentals, along with independent research. No single narrative, no matter how compelling, can replace careful consideration of the risks.