Anthropic seeks up to 5 GW AI data-centre capacity in NSW, prompting federal review

Emails released by the NSW parliament reveal that Anthropic, the U.S. firm behind the Claude chatbot, expressed interest in siting up to 5 GW of AI training capacity in New South Wales, a figure three times the nation’s total data-centre power. Dena Jacobs of Infrastructure NSW sought to coordinate a meeting between Investment NSW staff and Anthropic adviser John Garnaut ahead of a senior-level discussion during the CEO’s Sydney visit.

The scale of the request would demand tens of billions of dollars and a massive expansion of data-centre infrastructure. The federal cabinet will meet to deliberate new water and energy standards for AI data centres, responding to local backlash over noise, heat and power use. Analysts cite Australia’s abundant land, renewable energy potential and political stability as draws for U.S. AI companies.

While Anthropic has not disclosed exact capacity needs, earlier reports indicated a 5 GW target by 2030 and a longer-term aim of 20 GW. State officials, including Innovation Minister Anoulack Chanthivong, say they remain open to such investment but are tightening community and environmental safeguards.