Drax, Brookfield to Build £20B AI Data Centre in UK

Key Takeaways

• Drax partners with Brookfield and Radiant to build a 1GW+ AI data centre at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire
• Project could attract over £20 billion ($26.8 billion) in total investment
• First phase targets 100MW capacity with operations starting early 2028, costing £2.5 billion
• South Korea doubles AI chip budget to 21.3 trillion won as semiconductor exports jump 93.7% year over year
• Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix review debt guarantees for Anthropic, which reported $16.96 billion in Q3 revenue
• AMD gains traction in AI infrastructure with Meta, Vultr, and LeadDesk deploying EPYC processors and Instinct GPUs
• Thrive Holdings acquires ADT for $15.3 billion, with OpenAI as partner and investor
• US may need nearly $9 trillion in data centre investment by 2032, raising Dutch disease concerns
• Telangana announces free AI and cloud training for 100,000 students across 643 colleges
• AI-generated scam emails from social media data evade detection tools 81-100% of the time

Drax partners on $27 billion AI data centre at North Yorkshire power station

Drax shares rose over 8% after announcing a partnership with Brookfield and Radiant to build an AI data centre at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire. The project could attract more than £20 billion ($26.8 billion) in total investment. Drax will provide land, power and grid access while Radiant handles AI infrastructure and Brookfield supplies capital. The first phase targets up to 100MW of capacity with commercial operations starting in early 2028.

Drax shares surge on Brookfield and Radiant data centre deal

Drax Group announced a partnership with Brookfield and AI platform Radiant to develop a data centre exceeding 1 gigawatt at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire. Drax will supply land, power and grid access through its 4-gigawatt connection. Brookfield will provide capital through a joint venture with Qatar's Qai. The first phase needs planning and regulatory approvals before it can move forward, with up to 100MW of capacity targeted.

Drax partners with Brookfield for 20bn AI data centre

Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire announced a partnership with Brookfield to build a massive AI data centre. The project could attract over 20 billion pounds in investment, with the first phase costing 2.5 billion pounds. Radiant will handle the design, construction, and operation of the facility using Drax's existing power grid access. The initial phase aims to start operations in the first quarter of 2028 with up to 100 megawatts of computing capacity. Public consultation for the plan is expected to begin in November.

UKs most polluting plant powers future AI datacentre

Drax, the UK's largest carbon dioxide emitter, is set to power the country's biggest AI data centre under a new deal. The facility will be built on the Drax site with support from investors Brookfield and Radiant. Drax chief executive Will Gardiner stated the project will protect hundreds of jobs and support the north's reindustrialization. Although the plant burns woody biomass pellets, the company claims the emissions are absorbed by growing trees. The government plans to limit Drax's power generation role in the future, making this data centre project vital for the site's long-term survival.

South Korea doubles AI chip budget to 21 trillion won

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung unveiled a record budget that doubles spending on semiconductors and AI to 21.3 trillion won. This funding will support physical AI, data centers, and a sovereign AI model targeting world-class performance. The investment comes as semiconductor exports hit a record high, with October shipments jumping 93.7 percent year over year. Major companies like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are expected to benefit significantly from this increased government support. Investors are looking at exchange-traded funds to gain exposure to these growing AI and chip markets.

Korean chipmakers consider guarantees as AI financing reshapes investment

Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are reviewing financial support measures like debt guarantees for AI clients such as Anthropic. The two companies joined Anthropic's $65 billion Series H fundraising as strategic infrastructure partners. Anthropic's third quarter revenue reached $16.96 billion but operating loss was $567 million. Broadcom has already agreed to provide financial guarantees for Anthropic's infrastructure investment, potentially reshaping how semiconductor suppliers share financial risk with AI clients.

AMD stock in focus before Q3 earnings and AI partnership updates

AMD is drawing attention as partners including Meta, Vultr and LeadDesk highlighted new deployments of AMD EPYC processors, Instinct GPUs, Helios rackscale systems and ROCm software in AI workloads. These collaborations show AMD technology embedded in production AI infrastructure across data centers and cloud platforms. Investors will watch how these deep AI partnerships affect demand for data center products, though the stock still carries a rich P/E multiple.

Thrive Holdings acquires ADT in $15.3 billion deal for AI home security

Thrive Holdings, the holding company from Josh Kushner's Thrive Capital, agreed to acquire ADT for $10 per share in a deal valued at $15.3 billion. OpenAI is both a partner and investor in Thrive, supplying AI models and engineers to portfolio companies. ADT will serve as the foundation for Thrive Holdings' smart home security business and currently partners with Apple and Google. The deal comes as AI-driven physical security gains momentum with companies like Apple and Amazon entering the market.

Palantir well positioned to benefit from AI tailwinds amid revenue growth

Palantir's latest financial results show the software maker is well positioned to benefit from AI tailwinds amid accelerating revenue growth. Truist analyzed the company's performance and highlighted its strong positioning in the AI market. The results indicate growing demand for Palantir's software solutions driven by AI adoption across industries.

Social media posts could fuel the next AI scam

Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington found that AI tools can gather details from public social media posts and generate highly personalized scam emails known as context-aware spear phishing. The study showed that widely used safety tools like Llama Guard and ShieldGemma detected only 0% to 19% of attack requests with default settings. When given specific instructions, detection rates rose to as high as 99%. The researchers urge AI companies to implement safeguards against these targeted social engineering attacks.

OpenAI advances AI tools for engineering and product design

OpenAI shared new ways its models help engineers design and build physical products. GPT-6 helped design a device called Astra with hardware, software, and user interface in under a week. OpenAI hardware teams have seen model usage grow 23-fold since February. The company wants engineers and software vendors to help shape these tools for real-world manufacturing.

AI data center boom raises Dutch disease concerns for US economy

By 2032, building data centers and AI infrastructure in the U.S. may need nearly $9 trillion in investment. Economists warn that this massive boom could hurt other industries, a problem called Dutch disease. Soaring demand for data centers and power is masking cutbacks in other areas. Experts say the solution is not to slow AI growth but to expand permits and supply of resources.

Experts warn against using ChatGPT to decide how to vote

Some people are using ChatGPT to help decide who to vote for in the midterm elections. Carole Tarrant from the League of Women Voters of the Greater Roanoke Valley warns against this. She says midterms are too important and AI chats are not built to give accurate voting information. The warning was shared in a November 2 report by WSLS 10.

Telangana to train 100000 students in AI and cloud computing for free

One lakh students across Telangana will get free training in AI and cloud computing. The Telangana AI and Cloud Skilling Initiative was announced by IT Minister D Sridhar Babu after TASK and AWS signed an agreement. The program will cover 643 colleges and teach AI, machine learning, data engineering, and generative AI. Students will also get free access to over 900 AWS digital courses and discounted certification vouchers.

Sources

• Drax surges on $27 bln AI data centre partnership with Brookfield, Radiant
• Drax surges on $27 bln AI data centre partnership with Brookfield, Radiant
• Drax shares jump over 8% on £20bn AI data centre partnership with Brookfield
• UK’s most polluting power plant could power country’s largest AI datacentre
• South Korea Doubles AI Chip Budget: 4 ETFs to Ride the Wave
• Korean chipmakers weigh guarantees as AI financing reshapes investment cycle
• Why AMD Stock Is In Focus Before Q3 Earnings And AI Partnership Updates
• OpenAI-Backed Thrive Holdings Acquires ADT in $15.3B Deal to Build AI Home Security
• Palantir Well Positioned to Benefit From AI Tailwinds Amid Accelerating Revenue Growth, Truist Says
• Your social media posts could fuel the next AI scam
• Accelerating engineering for the physical world
• Is the AI boom giving America ‘Dutch disease’?
• Are you using generative AI to help decide who to vote for this election season?
• 1 Lakh Telangana students to get free training in AI, cloud computing