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Firmus, an AI data center company backed by Nvidia, has canceled its planned initial public offering (IPO) due to market volatility and uncertainty about long-term returns for investments in AI technology. The IPO was initially valued at over $30 billion but faced skepticism from investors like UniSuper regarding the company's high valuation and potential debt levels. Firmus will now seek private funding instead, with concerns raised by industry analysts about the sustainability of massive investments in AI firms without clear financial benefits.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Oliver Curtis, husband of Australian influencer Roxy Jacenko, faces potential setbacks for his AI data center company, Firmus Technologies, which had planned a massive $43 billion IPO on Australia's ASX exchange in October 2023. Firmus, founded by Curtis and Tom Rosenfield in Sydney in 2019, secured deals with major tech firms including OpenAI, Nvidia, and Meta to provide infrastructure for AI model training. However, due to market volatility and investor skepticism over the company’s high valuation and minimal revenue, Firmus's IPO was postponed and its valuation slashed to around $30 billion. The proposed share price also dropped from about $11 to roughly $8.75. Concerns raised by environmental groups in northern Tasmania further complicated plans for local data center expansion, potentially contributing to investor doubt. On October 26th, Firmus officially scrapped the listing citing unfavorable market conditions and will now seek private funding instead.
Written for “Firmus Float Troubles” on 2026-10-09,
grounded in this article and the 5 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 67545 · logged 2026-10-09
- Published
Artificial intelligence (AI) data centre company Firmus has scrapped its plans for what would have been one of Australia's biggest-ever stock market listings.
asserted
what → publish → listings
The Nvidia-backed firm said it had made the decision due to "recent market volatility and prevailing market conditions" and that going public would not be in the company or shareholders' best interests.
asserted
going → back → interests
Firmus had initially announced plans for a stock market debut that valued the company at more than $30bn (£22.65bn).
asserted
that → announce → 30bn
One investment firm told the BBC that it had decided not take part in the initial public offering (IPO) over concerns about its valuation.
asserted
it → tell → valuation
"Firmus will now pursue capital from the private markets and consider alternative public and private market options.
asserted
Firmus → pursue → options
We will provide additional information to shareholders as those options progress," the company said.
asserted
company → provide → shareholders
Firmus builds and operates liquid-cooled data centres, or what it calls "AI factories", for clients including OpenAI and Meta.
asserted
it → build → OpenAI
It has operations in Australia, Singapore and other parts of the Asia-Pacific region.
asserted
It → have → region
The company's backers include Nvidia and major investment firms Blackstone and Jane Street.
asserted
backers → include → Nvidia
Blackstone declined to comment when contacted by the BBC.
asserted
Blackstone → decline → BBC
Nvidia and Jane Street have also been contacted for comment.
asserted
Nvidia → contact → comment
The decision by Firmus to scrap its stock market listing comes as investors and industry analysts have raised concerns about the hundreds of billions of dollars being poured into AI as the prospects for long-term returns remain unclear.
uncertain
prospects → scrap → returns
UniSuper, one of Australia's biggest pension funds, was among the institutional investors that decided not take part in the IPO.
asserted
that → decide → IPO
"We think that Firmus indeed has a compelling story.
asserted
Firmus → think → story
It just doesn't have a compelling valuation," UniSuper's chief investment officer John Pearce said in an update to investors.
asserted
officer → have → investors
He also said UniSuper was concerned that Firmus would have to go further into debt to fund its growth plans.
asserted
Firmus → say → plans
The [Australian Securities Exchange] needs new stories and this could have been one if it was correctly priced," Pearce told the BBC.
uncertain
Pearce → need → BBC
In September, OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said his company did not aim to list on the stock market this year, citing concerns over the technology's safety that make it "an ill-advised moment" to go public.
asserted
it → say → safety
The ChatGPT-maker, along with rival Anthropic, have been eyeing blockbuster stock market debuts that would value the firms at more than $1tn each.
asserted
that → eye → 1tn
AI-related stocks, Nvidia and Oracle, fell in US trading on Thursday after reports that OpenAI's revenues were lower than previously thought.
asserted
revenues → relate → reports
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