Sharon AI Surges 9% on $950 Million Cloud Deal in Australia

Australian Neocloud provider SharonAI Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:SHAZ) secured a five-year, $950 million cloud computing agreement with an undisclosed global technology firm, expanding its AI-focused infrastructure across data centers in Australia and sending its shares up nearly 9%.

"We are thrilled to continue to expand our AI Cloud business, building and deploying the latest cloud computing infrastructure in Australia with NEXTDC and Vast Data," James Manning, Co-Founder and CEO of Sharon AI, said. "This contract follows on from our previously announced agreements in the region, and our customer pipeline continues to grow."

The deal will see Sharon AI deploy cloud solutions within multiple NEXTDC Ltd. data centers, with revenue expected to begin flowing in the third and fourth quarters of 2026. The infrastructure will be built on the VAST Data AI Operating System, a platform designed to unify storage, database, and compute functions to handle AI workloads more efficiently. Shares of Sharon AI jumped 8.8% in pre-market trading Thursday following the announcement.

The contract solidifies Sharon AI’s position in the rapidly growing Australian AI cloud market, adding to previous agreements in the region. For investors, the deal represents a significant long-term revenue stream and validates the company's high-performance computing strategy, as strong demand continues from enterprise and hyperscale customers across the Asia-Pacific region.

Partnership Details

The collaboration brings together three key players in the data infrastructure space. Sharon AI, a high-performance computing company, will manage the deployment and operation of the AI cloud platform. The physical infrastructure will be housed in facilities operated by NEXTDC, a leading Australian data center operator.

The technological foundation will be provided by VAST Data's AI Operating System. "These deployments require more than accelerated compute; they demand a reliable data foundation that can support their workloads," Sunil Chavan, Vice-President for Asia-Pacific & Japan at VAST Data, said. This system collapses traditionally separate layers of the technology stack, which is expected to allow Sharon AI's customers to run their workloads with greater efficiency.

David Dzienciol, Chief Customer Officer & Chief Commercial Officer at NEXTDC, added, "We are pleased to strengthen our partnership with Sharon AI, and to see compute infrastructure deployed across our facilities in Australia."

Market Context

The deal comes as demand for AI and cloud computing infrastructure soars globally, creating a high-stakes environment for providers. The cost of essential components like memory and storage has been rising sharply, a trend that benefits some companies but adds cost pressure across the technology supply chain. By securing a long-term, high-value contract, Sharon AI gains a degree of revenue certainty in a volatile market. The company has stated it continues to see strong demand from enterprise, hyperscale, research, and AI-native sectors throughout Australia and the broader Asia-Pacific region.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.