Carbon3.ai to invest £1bn in UK’s AI infrastructure network
Author: Joe Peck
Carbon3.ai, a UK sovereign AI infrastructure company, has announced a £1 billion commitment to develop a nationwide network of data centres that aims to transform legacy industrial and energy infrastructure into secure, fully sustainable, AI-ready hubs.
Designed, owned, and operated by Carbon3.ai, the network will seek to deliver high-performance, low-carbon compute capacity to fuel the digital readiness of UK enterprise, research, and public services.
All infrastructure and data processing will be located within the UK and fully subject to UK jurisdiction and regulatory oversight.
The company has already completed a successful proof of concept and is moving into full-scale rollout with its first 5MW site in the East Midlands, set to open in March 2026, and planning permission submitted for a second facility in Derbyshire.
New appointments for further expansion
To drive this next phase of growth, Carbon3.ai says it has strengthened its leadership with a team that “brings together deep expertise across government, finance, and national security.”
Sana Khareghani, former Head of the UK Government Office for Artificial Intelligence, joins as Chief Strategy Officer, leading the company’s strategy on national AI infrastructure and seeking to ensure its network advances the UK’s digital competitiveness and long-term energy transition.
Sana is supported by advisors Richard Collier-Keywood, former Vice Chair of PwC’s Global Board, and Sir George Zambellas, former Navy Chief.
Sana comments, “If the UK is to lead in AI, we must first secure the foundations that make it possible: compute, power, and data. Carbon3 is building those foundations here at home, transforming legacy energy sites into a sovereign, renewable, AI-ready infrastructure network.
“This isn’t a vision on paper, we’re making it happen now on the ground. By putting critical infrastructure back under UK control, we’re creating sustainable capacity and national capability that will power innovation, research, and enterprise for decades to come.”
Tom Humphreys, CEO of Carbon3.ai, adds, “The UK’s competitiveness in AI depends on infrastructure that is truly sovereign, sustainable, and resilient. It’s not enough to invest in data centres; we need a national backbone for AI that’s owned, powered, and secured right here at home.
“Our goal is to ensure that British enterprise, researchers, and public institutions have access to world-class compute capacity without relying on foreign-controlled infrastructure.
“The Government recognises the urgency; that is why they have said we need 6GW of sovereign AI capacity by 2030. Together, we can get there, securing a foundation for innovation, investment, and long-term national advantage.”
Carbon3.ai asserts that these developments support the UK Government’s AI and digital infrastructure agenda of strengthening national resilience, creating regional opportunity, and ensuring the benefits of technological progress are rooted in British infrastructure and communities.
By converting brownfield and legacy energy sites into renewable-powered compute hubs, the company says it aligns directly with the Government’s priorities for AI growth zones and the designation of data centres as critical national infrastructure.
