Nebius Secures Landmark Multi-Billion Dollar Agreement with Microsoft
Amsterdam, September 8, 2025 — Nebius Group N.V. (NASDAQ: NBIS), a prominent AI infrastructure company, announced today a transformative multi-year contract with Microsoft to provide dedicated AI infrastructure capacity from its new Vineland, New Jersey data center starting later this year.
This deal marks a significant milestone for Nebius, catapulting the company into a leading position within the booming AI cloud services industry. The contract is valued at an expected minimum of $17.4 billion, spanning through 2031, underscoring the scale and duration of cooperation between the two giants.
Implications for Nebius’s Growth and AI Cloud Business
Arkady Volozh, founder and CEO of Nebius, stated that the company’s core AI cloud operations are performing exceptionally well, serving a diverse customer base from emerging AI startups to established enterprises. This new deal with Microsoft constitutes the first of many anticipated long-term contracts with leading AI labs and large tech firms. According to Volozh, beyond its attractive economic terms, the agreement will enable accelerated growth of Nebius’s AI cloud business through 2026 and beyond.
The partnership aligns with broader industry trends, where hyperscale cloud providers like Microsoft aim to optimize operational and financial leverage by relying more on off-balance-sheet infrastructure arrangements to support surging AI demand. Analysts, including D.A. Davidson’s Gil Luria, emphasize that such deals help technology firms limit upfront capital expenditures while securing robust computing capacity.
Financial Strategy and Market Impact
Nebius plans to finance the capital expenditures related to this contract through a mixture of deal-generated cash flows and debt issuance secured against Microsoft’s credit quality. The company is also exploring additional financing options to accelerate growth faster than its initial plans, with further updates anticipated.
Following the announcement, Nebius’s shares soared by approximately 40% in pre-market trading, reflecting investor enthusiasm about the company’s prospects as a pivotal AI infrastructure provider. This surge also lifted related AI mining stocks, signaling wider market optimism about the AI cloud sector’s expansion.
Industry Context and Future Outlook
Microsoft’s decision to engage with Nebius for critical AI infrastructure services illustrates an industry shift towards specialized AI-native cloud providers. These companies are becoming vital enablers of the artificial intelligence boom, offering scalable and sophisticated solutions tailored to AI workloads.
Investor and market watchers view the Nebius-Microsoft partnership as a bellwether deal that could inspire similar contracts between large tech corporations and AI infrastructure providers, further fueling rapid sector growth.
More details regarding this agreement are disclosed in Nebius’s 6-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.