Saudi Arabian data center firm DataVolt plans to complete a 100-megawatt facility in NEOM within 13 months at a cost of around $1 billion. The facility will be focused on exporting compute capacity and is part of Saudi Arabia's goal to become a third global hub for AI, behind the US and China. DataVolt's CEO Rajit Nanda stated that the timeline would make it the fastest construction of such a facility in the world. The entire 1.5 gigawatt of data center capacity planned at NEOM will be sold abroad, with DataVolt committing to excluding Chinese firms from its supply chain.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-07,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Saudi Arabian company DataVolt is racing to build a 100-megawatt data center in NEOM, northwestern Saudi Arabia, which will be completed within 13 months and cost around $1 billion. The facility, focused on exporting computing power to international customers, aims to take advantage of existing subsea cables and cheap renewable energy. DataVolt's CEO Rajit Nanda claims the project will be the fastest of its kind in the world. Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in data centers and AI technology as part of its goal to become a third global hub for artificial intelligence, alongside the US and China. The entire 1.5 gigawatt of planned data center capacity at NEOM is expected to be sold abroad.
Written for “Saudi Arabia's Compute Export Plan” on 2026-09-07,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.00, but none of the 2 quote(s) it offered could be found in the article text, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 6815: no verified evidence · logged 2026-09-07
The Scoop
AI data center builder DataVolt, linked to Saudi billionaire Mohammed Abunayyan, plans to complete a 100-megawatt facility in NEOM within 13 months, focused entirely on exporting compute capacity.
asserted
builder → link → capacity
The data center will cost around $1 billion and has already broken ground.
asserted
center → cost → ground
Rajit Nanda, DataVolt’s chief executive, said the timeline would make it the fastest for such a facility in the world.
asserted
it → say → world
DataVolt plans to expand the capacity of the location to 360MW, he said in an interview.
asserted
he → plan → interview
Saudi Arabia aims to become a third global hub for AI, behind the US and China.
asserted
Arabia → aim → US
The kingdom is pouring money into data centers and investing in tech companies that agree to move some of their operations to the country.
asserted
that → pour → country
Developed in partnership with state-controlled HUMAIN, DataVolt’s data center will be the first in NEOM, in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
asserted
center → develop → Arabia
It aims to use existing subsea cables and cheap renewable energy to supply computing power to international customers.
asserted
It → aim → customers
The entire 1.5 gigawatt of data center capacity planned at NEOM will be sold abroad, Nanda said.
asserted
Nanda → plan → NEOM
DataVolt signed an agreement with HUMAIN last week to partner on the NEOM projects.
asserted
DataVolt → sign → projects
It’s also close to securing financing for the first facility, Nanda said.
asserted
Nanda → ’ → facility
Nanda was previously chief financial officer and chief investment officer at power plant developer ACWA POWER, which is also backed by Abunayyan.
asserted
which → back → Abunayyan
While at ACWA, he was instrumental in helping to raise billions of dollars in debt to finance projects around the world, and said he plans to use that experience to fund DataVolt’s expansion.
asserted
he → help → expansion
Riyadh-based DataVolt was founded in 2023 by Vision Invest, a firm established by two wealthy Saudi families, Abunayyan Holding and Al Muhaiadib Group.
asserted
DataVolt → base → families
DataVolt has committed to excluding Chinese firms from its supply chain.
asserted
DataVolt → commit → chain
“My infrastructure will not use Chinese components, Chinese supply chain, and Chinese technology,” Nanda said.
asserted
Nanda → use → components
The company does not expect delays in getting access to the semiconductors it needs for its data centers, despite tight US controls on exports of advanced American-made chips.
asserted
it → expect → chips
“We do not anticipate any challenges getting the chips we need,” Nanda said.
asserted
Nanda → anticipate → chips
The Saudi and US governments signed a strategic cooperation agreement related to AI last year, although details of the deal and how many chips the kingdom can buy were not announced.
asserted
kingdom → sign → chips
Nanda declined to elaborate on the terms of the US-Saudi deal.
asserted
Nanda → decline → deal
Nanda said he doesn’t foresee any bubble in AI infrastructure investments - the data centers and chips where DataVolt is focused - and if there is an AI bubble it’s in the valuations of startups building new applications.
asserted
it → say → applications
“What I can say with confidence is the world is out of compute capacity for the next 10 years, and the kind of shortage that exists in compute has the ability to slow down the economy,” he said.
asserted
he → say → economy
Notable
- Chinese tech companies are lining up to do business in the kingdom, as Saudi Arabia builds a reputation for being a gateway market to the Global South to a new generation of entrepreneurs, Semafor reported.
asserted
Semafor → line → entrepreneurs
