Nvidia backs Firmus in Australia’s AI push, valuing startup at $1.9B and fueling Tasmania data-centre plan

Singapore-based Firmus, co-founded by Oliver Curtis and Tim Rosenfield in 2019, has secured a $330 million funding round led by Nvidia, with Ellerston Capital also participating, that values the company at about $1.9 billion and positions it for a planned public listing. The deal marks the largest equity capital raise for an Australian AI-led company this year and signals continued interest from global tech giants in funding Australian AI infrastructure.

Firmus began as a bitcoin mining venture but has shifted its focus to AI-focused data centres. The company has built a software platform that manages every aspect of a data centre and has touted cooling technology that it says uses roughly 60 percent less energy than competing systems. With the new capital, Firmus plans to build a substantial data-centre hub in Tasmania, pitched as an “AI factory” that would power, train and operate next-generation AI systems using its in-house software and cooling technology. The project, dubbed Project Southgate, is projected to attract up to $2.1 billion in its first stage and could create as many as 100 direct jobs in the region.

Industry observers note Firmus’s ascent places it among Australia’s private unicorns, a cohort that already includes Canva, Rokt and Airwallex. The company’s leadership describes the Tasmania project as a strategic anchor for Australia’s AI infrastructure, with the aim of delivering a cost-effective, scalable platform that can power both training and real-time inference for future AI applications.

Curtis has framed AI factories as essential infrastructure in a country aiming to become a regional hub for AI development. In interviews with Australian media, he described AI factories as “purpose-built to power, train and inference artificial intelligences,” a statement that underscores his emphasis on integrated hardware, software and energy strategy. Rosenfield echoed the energy narrative, arguing that the use of Tasmania’s renewable energy and in-house cooling technology could make Firmus’s facility the most cost-effective and sustainable AI facility globally. The pair also highlighted the concept of a “green AI token,” suggesting that producing AI tokens in Tasmania with renewable power would enable AI to scale in a cleaner manner.

The funding comes amid broader attention on Australia’s AI infrastructure needs and the country’s appeal to technology investors seeking regional opportunities. Firmus’s evolution from a high-energy, capital-intensive mining business to an AI-focused data-centre operator is being watched as a potential blueprint for other startups trying to align AI ambitions with sustainability and local energy advantages. The Tasmanian project is positioned not only as a domestic job creator but also as a potential signaling point for Australia’s role in the Asia-Pacific AI ecosystem as the technology industry continues to expand beyond traditional hubs.

Curtis’s path to this moment has been deeply scrutinized. In 2016, he was jailed for insider trading, sentenced to two years in prison after conspiring with then-best friend John Hartman to arrange illegal trades that generated nearly $1.5 million in illicit gains. He was banned from managing corporations for several years, effectively ending his early finance career. He served a portion of his sentence and was released in 2017, a homecoming that Curtis described to The Daily Telegraph as a pivotal moment for his family. “It was tough, but you come out a stronger person,” he said, recalling the experience as something he had to move past for the sake of his wife and children.

Jacenko, then 37, faced her own health challenge around the same period when she was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after Curtis’s sentencing. The couple has since rebuilt their lives around their family, including daughters Pixie and Hunter. Curtis has framed his personal journey as one of resilience and redemption, a narrative that his supporters say aligns with his commitment to building long-term, sustainable business ventures in the AI space.

Rising private AI power players in Australia are increasingly looking to offshore funding and strategic partnerships to accelerate growth and scale operations. Firmus’s $330 million raise, led by Nvidia with participation from Ellerston Capital, underscores a trend in which global tech majors aim to secure a foothold in regional AI ecosystems while backing ventures that combine cutting-edge data-centre management with energy-efficient cooling technology. In Australia, the combination of government policy support, renewable-energy resources and a pipeline of local chronicled talent could help sustain a pipeline of AI infrastructure projects that complement software-focused startups in the region.

As Firmus positions itself for a potential public listing, observers will be watching how the company translates its technology and green-energy claims into demonstrable cost savings and performance metrics at scale. If the Tasmania development proceeds as envisioned, the project could become a case study for building AI infrastructure with a lower environmental footprint, a factor that increasingly informs investor risk assessment and public policy in technology-centric economies.