Hut 8 CEO on Anthropic, Fluidstack AI data center deal backed by Google

Strategic Partnerships & Financial Backing - Hut 8 emphasizes the importance of creditworthy counterparties, viewing Google as a highly credible investment-grade partner due to its diverse business operations and cash flow [2] - Google serves as a financial backstop for a 15-year commitment, providing confidence in data center construction and deployment for various tenants [3] - JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs are partners, providing project global financing up to 85% at SOFR plus 225, indicating strong credit counterparty assessment [8][9] Business Diversification & Infrastructure Development - Hut 8 is building an energy infrastructure platform supporting both Bitcoin and AI compute, diversifying its revenue streams [3] - The company spun out American Bitcoin as a separate public entity, continuing to operate data centers for both AI and Bitcoin compute [4] - Hut 8 is developing a 1 gigawatt project in Corpus Christie (Lawn Hill), initially underwritten for Bitcoin compute, but now attracting interest from AI customers [6] Market Demand & Competitive Advantage - Hut 8 perceives distinct demand types for Bitcoin and AI compute, with Bitcoin data centers willing to locate in areas with curtailment options [4][5] - The demand from American Bitcoin allows Hut 8 to underwrite new megawatts that might not be feasible for AI data centers alone [5] - Securing competitive financing terms (SOFR plus 225) and a high loan-to-cost (LTC) percentage demonstrates the attractiveness of the credit counterparty [8][9]