OpenAI and Anthropic are reportedly signing deals for smaller data centers, in the 20-30 MW range, to address immediate compute needs. According to Tom's Hardware, the companies are seeking this capacity while their larger projects are still being built.
The two AI firms have already committed billions of dollars to massive data center campuses, but those gigawatt-scale facilities are not yet available. The smaller facilities are intended to fill the gap during the construction period.
The report highlights a practical tension in AI infrastructure: long-term bets on huge data centers do not help with today's demand. Until those campuses come online, smaller leases are the stopgap.