Anthropic signs its first Australian deal to use a 2.16 gigawatt, four-building data centre campus at the Western Downs Digital Park in Queensland to power its Claude AI program.

The campus will sit on farmland about 250 km from Brisbane and is planned to connect to the Braemar high‑voltage substation, with Anthropic covering grid connection costs and upgrades.

The four-building facility, developed by Zerra DC and backed by Singapore-based AGP, is designed for inference workloads and will rely on air‑cooled technology with a closed‑loop water system to minimize local water use.

The project is part of a broader regional push for data infrastructure and energy resilience, with plans to tap into Queensland’s renewable resources and include on-site battery storage and long-term power purchase agreements.

Environmental and community groups warn about the project’s high energy demand and potential pollution, arguing it could increase reliance on coal and gas and raise local environmental concerns.

Authorities emphasize balancing rapid AI investment with fair compensation for creators and responsible development, amid ongoing regulatory debates.

The deal is subject to local council assessment and Foreign Investment Review Board approvals, with initial operations expected to begin next year after these go-ahead steps.

Local councils and FIRB approvals are prerequisites for the lease, which remains contingent on regulatory clearances.

The project ties into a wider narrative on regional investment in data infrastructure, water management, and energy supply, amid questions about water use and sustainability for hyperscale centres.

Policy debates in Australia consider an opt-out model for rights holders to block AI training use of their works, a proposal critics say could reduce creators’ income and protections.

A leaked federal document and ongoing discussions point to possible constitutional policy shifts toward an opt-out approach, while the prime minister signals a national framework without broad weakening of copyright rules.

The facility’s primary function will be to run inference on pre-trained models rather than to train new ones.