IREN (NASDAQ: IREN) reported that its first 50MW Horizon 1 direct-to-chip liquid cooled AI Cloud deployment has been delivered to and accepted by Microsoft at IREN’s Childress, Texas campus. Horizon 1 is part of a five-year, $9.7 billion cloud services contract announced in November 2025.
IREN also achieved NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud status on its NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 deployment at Horizon 1, following NVIDIA testing. The company continues to target expansion to 480MW gross AI Cloud capacity in 2026 and 1.2GW in 2027, including future Horizons 2–4 for Microsoft.
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Positive
Horizon 1 delivered and accepted by Microsoft under 50MW AI Cloud deployment
$9.7 billion five-year cloud services contract framework referenced for 2026 deliveries
Achieved NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud status on NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 at Horizon 1
Targeting AI Cloud capacity of 480MW in 2026 and 1.2GW in 2027
The five AI-tagged events carried an average 24-hour move of 6.62%, adding a historical benchmark to Horizon 1’s delivery and cloud-status update. High short positioning was the principal sourced risk; subsequent execution milestones remain the key evidence.
Deployment Count
4 deployments
Microsoft deployments scheduled for delivery in 2026
IT Load
50MW
Each Microsoft AI Cloud deployment
Cloud Services Contract
$9.7bn
Microsoft contract announced in November 2025
Contract Term
five years
Microsoft cloud services contract
2026 AI Cloud Capacity Target
480MW
Gross AI Cloud capacity target for 2026
2027 AI Cloud Capacity Target
1.2GW
Gross AI Cloud capacity target for 2027
Site Team
more than 3,000 people
IREN site team credited with the milestone
Date
Event
Sentiment
24h Move
Catalyst
Jul 20
Positive
+19.6%
New AI contracts and a raised 2026 ARR target drove a 19.57% reaction.
Jun 01
Positive
+2.8%
NVIDIA DSX Air validation supported planned deployment of more than 50,000 GPUs.
May 07
Positive
+7.7%
IREN secured a five-year NVIDIA AI infrastructure contract valued at $3.4 billion.
Mar 04
Positive
-8.5%
GPU purchases expanded the fleet to 150,000 while additional financing initiatives were established.
Nov 03
Positive
+11.5%
IREN secured a five-year Microsoft cloud services contract valued at $9.7 billion.
Pattern Detected
Among five AI-tagged events, four produced positive 24-hour reactions while one diverged.
direct-to-chip liquid cooled
technical
“50MW (IT load) direct-to-chip liquid cooled AI Cloud deployments”
A direct-to-chip liquid cooled system routes a liquid coolant through pipes and metal cold plates that make direct contact with a processor or other semiconductor, so heat is picked up at the chip and carried away to a radiator or heat exchanger. For investors, it describes a thermal-management approach that can allow higher performance, lower energy use, and tighter equipment density—like replacing a big fan with a water jacket—affecting power costs, equipment design, and data-center scaling.
gpu
technical
“data centers supporting its GPU deployments”
A GPU (graphics processing unit) is a specialized computer chip designed to handle many calculations at once, originally for rendering images and video but now widely used for tasks like artificial intelligence, data analysis and high-performance computing. Investors watch GPU demand and prices because strong sales often signal growth for chip makers and their customers, affect profit margins and capital spending, and can forecast wider trends in gaming, AI adoption and cloud services.
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
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08/13/2026 – 07:33 AM
NEW YORK, Aug. 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) (“IREN”) today announced that Horizon 1 has been delivered to and accepted by Microsoft, and that IREN has achieved NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud status on NVIDIA GB300 NVL72.
Horizon 1 is the first of four 50MW (IT load) direct-to-chip liquid cooled AI Cloud deployments scheduled for delivery to Microsoft at IREN’s Childress, Texas campus in 2026 under a five-year, $9.7bn cloud services contract announced in November 2025.
The rapid delivery of Horizon 1 to Microsoft reflects the agility of IREN’s vertically integrated model, which provides end-to-end control across design, engineering and construction of the data centers supporting its GPU deployments.
IREN’s Exemplar Cloud status was achieved following NVIDIA’s testing of its NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 deployment at Horizon 1. The designation demonstrates IREN’s ability to support demanding AI workloads with performance, reliability and scale.
IREN continues to target a broader expansion to 480MW (gross) AI Cloud capacity in 2026 and 1.2GW (gross) AI Cloud capacity in 2027.
Daniel Roberts, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of IREN, said:
“Delivering Horizon 1 demonstrates the strength of our vertically integrated model and our ability to execute complex AI infrastructure projects at speed and scale.
I want to congratulate and thank the more than 3,000 people across our site team whose expertise, commitment and execution made this milestone possible.
We look forward to building on this momentum with Microsoft as we work to deliver Horizons 2-4 later this year.”
About IREN
IREN is a vertically integrated AI Cloud platform, delivering data centers, compute and software for AI training and inference. IREN’s platform is underpinned by its expansive portfolio of land and grid-connected power in renewable-rich regions across North America, Europe and APAC.
Contacts
Investors
ir@iren.com
Media
media@iren.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or IREN’s future financial or operating performance. Forward-looking statements include information concerning possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of our business plan and strategies, revenue targets, expectations regarding GPU deployment, expansion and build out of data center capacity, and trends we expect to affect our business. These statements often include words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “may,” “can,” “should,” “could,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “project,” “strive,” “budget,” “forecast,” “expect,” “intend,” “target”, “will,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “continue,” “scheduled”. Forward-looking statements may also be made, verbally or in writing, by members of our Board or management team in connection with this news release.
These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause IREN’s actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including IREN’s ability to successfully execute on its growth strategies and operating plans, achieve its targeted annualized AI Cloud revenue, continue to develop its existing data center sites, design and deploy direct-to-chip liquid cooling systems, and diversify and expand into the market for high performance computing solutions (including the market for cloud services and potential colocation services), along with other important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in IREN’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on August 28, 2025 and our other filings with the SEC. These and other important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any forward-looking statement included in this press release speaks only as of the date of such statement. Except as required by law, IREN disclaims any obligation to update or revise, or to publicly announce any update or revision to, any of the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
FAQ
What did IREN (NASDAQ: IREN) announce about Horizon 1 and Microsoft on August 13, 2026?
IREN announced that Horizon 1, a 50MW AI Cloud deployment, was delivered to and accepted by Microsoft. According to IREN, Horizon 1 is the first of four planned deployments at its Childress, Texas campus under a previously announced five-year cloud services contract.
What does NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud status on GB300 NVL72 mean for IREN (IREN) investors?
NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud status indicates NVIDIA tested and recognized IREN’s GB300 NVL72 deployment at Horizon 1. According to IREN, this designation demonstrates its ability to support demanding AI workloads with performance, reliability and scale, potentially strengthening its position in AI infrastructure services.
How much AI Cloud capacity is IREN targeting for 2026 and 2027?
IREN is targeting 480MW gross AI Cloud capacity in 2026 and 1.2GW in 2027. According to IREN, Horizon 1 is the first step in this plan, with additional Horizons 2–4 for Microsoft expected to contribute to the expanded capacity.
Where is IREN’s Horizon 1 AI Cloud deployment for Microsoft located?
Horizon 1 is located at IREN’s campus in Childress, Texas. According to IREN, this site hosts the first 50MW direct-to-chip liquid cooled AI Cloud deployment for Microsoft, forming part of the multi-year, multibillion-dollar cloud services agreement announced in November 2025.
How does IREN describe the role of its vertically integrated model in delivering Horizon 1?
IREN links Horizon 1’s rapid delivery to its vertically integrated model, which spans design, engineering and construction. According to IREN, this end-to-end control supports faster execution of complex AI infrastructure projects and underpins its GPU deployment and AI Cloud growth strategy.