Australian AI Data-Center Firm Cancels $5 B IPO, Raising Concerns for Chip Makers

Australian AI infrastructure company Firmus halted a planned initial public offering that would have raised about $5 billion at a $30 billion valuation. The decision, made after insufficient investor interest, follows a broader slowdown in funding for artificial-intelligence projects.

Firmus operates a Melbourne data centre that hosts the largest collection of Nvidia Blackwell Ultra chips in the Southern Hemisphere and counts OpenAI and Meta Platforms among its customers. The company had intended to use IPO proceeds to expand data-center capacity across Australasia.

Analysts note that the IPO cancellation may signal weakening demand for semiconductor components used in AI workloads. Nvidia estimates that the five largest hyperscale cloud providers could spend $800 billion on AI data-center infrastructure in 2026 and $1.3 trillion in 2027, but recent price hikes for AI services and cost-cutting measures by firms such as Uber, Walmart and AT&T have prompted some customers to scale back usage.

"OpenAI recently introduced a $500-per-month subscription for uncapped access to its flagship models, a 150 percent increase over its previous top-tier plan," the report notes.

A UBS survey cited in the article found that 60 percent of businesses are shifting some AI workloads to less expensive models to control expenses, potentially lowering demand for high-performance GPUs and high-bandwidth memory.

Nvidia’s shares are trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of about 29, roughly half its ten-year average, while Micron’s ratio stands near 14, below broader market averages. Analysts suggest investors may be pricing in a softer outlook for semiconductor demand and advise a cautious stance until the upcoming earnings reports from the major cloud providers are released.