🌍 A New Stargate Opens in the North
On July 31, 2025, OpenAI unveiled Stargate Norway as part of its OpenAI for Countries initiative—a massive AI infrastructure project nestled in Narvik, Northern Norway. This facility, powered entirely by renewable energy, is designed to deliver 100,000 NVIDIA GPUs by 2026, with ambitions to scale to 520MW of compute capacity.
Partnering with Nscale and Aker, OpenAI aims to create a sovereign-grade AI gigafactory that supports European startups, researchers, and public sector initiatives. The site will leverage Narvik’s cool climate and abundant hydropower to optimize energy efficiency, including direct-to-chip liquid cooling and heat recycling for low-carbon enterprises.

đź§ Strategic Pivot: From SoftBank to Sovereignty
This European expansion follows the collapse of OpenAI’s original $500B Stargate venture with SoftBank in the U.S., which was announced with fanfare at the White House in January 20254. That project promised a fleet of hyperscale data centers but quickly unraveled due to disputes over site locations, lack of execution, and partner misalignment.
Oracle stepped in to salvage the vision, securing a 4.5GW deal with OpenAI to build data centers across several U.S. states. Yet, the original Stargate brand became fragmented, with separate facilities in Texas, UAE, and now Norway.
⚠️ Global Concerns: Surveillance, Sovereignty, and Scale
While Stargate Norway is framed as a sustainable and sovereign AI initiative, critics raise concerns about:
- Geopolitical implications: Stargate is seen as a strategic move to counter China’s AI rise, echoing Cold War-style infrastructure races.
- Surveillance potential: Massive compute clusters could enable real-time behavioral modeling, predictive policing, and biometric tracking at scale.
- Corporate capture: Despite public benefit messaging, Stargate remains a commercial venture, raising questions about who controls the data and infrastructure.
- Environmental impact: Even with renewable energy, the sheer scale of GPU deployment and cooling demands poses ecological risks if not tightly regulated.

Stargate USA vs Stargate Norway: A Juxtaposition
Feature | Stargate USA (SoftBank) | Stargate Norway (OpenAI/Nscale/Aker) |
---|---|---|
Launch Date | Jan 2025 | Jul 2025 |
Initial Investment | $500B (planned) | ~$1B (committed) |
Status | Stalled, fragmented | Active, under construction |
Partners | SoftBank, Oracle, OpenAI | Nscale, Aker, OpenAI |
Energy Source | Mixed (some fossil, some renewable) | 100% renewable hydropower |
Sovereignty Focus | U.S. national security | European sovereign AI infrastructure |
Public Criticism | Elon Musk, analysts, environmentalists | Surveillance concerns, geopolitical tension |
🕵️ Surveillance State Aspirations: A Global Pattern
Whether in Ohio, Narvik, or Abu Dhabi, Stargate facilities reflect a global trend: governments and tech oligarchs racing to build centralized AI superclusters that consolidate power, data, and influence. These hubs are not just about productivity—they’re about control.
- Compute sovereignty is the new oil.
- AI infrastructure is the new battleground.
- Data centers are the new fortresses.
From Meta’s “hundreds of billions” in AI infrastructure to China’s DeepSeek models, the Stargate narrative is part of a broader surveillance-industrial complex emerging across borders.

🥜 The Final Nut: Chip Deez Stargate Commentary
At Deeznuts.tech, we believe Stargate Norway is both a technological marvel and a cautionary tale.
Yes, it’s green. Yes, it’s sovereign. But let’s not pretend that 100,000 GPUs humming in the Arctic are just for startup demos and school chatbots. These facilities are the nervous systems of future governance, capable of modeling populations, predicting dissent, and nudging behavior.
The real Stargate isn’t a portal to innovation—it’s a gateway to algorithmic governance.
So before we celebrate the cool air and clean power, let’s ask: Who gets to walk through the Stargate? And who gets watched from the other side?
Comment below any concerns or Contact Us with any questions.
📚 Sources
- OpenAI’s Stargate Norway Announcement
- U.S. News: Trump-Backed Stargate Controversy
- Network World: Stargate USA Struggles
- NRIPage: Billionaires Clash Over Stargate
- WinBuzzer: Stargate Norway Launch
- TMCNet: Stargate Norway Press Release
- Heatmap News: Stargate Disarray
- DeepNewz: Oracle Deal and Stargate Norway
- The Register: Stargate Norway Buildout
- Google DeepMind’s Frontier Safety Framework 3.0: Tackles AI Shutdown Resistance and Manipulative Behavior
- Google DeepMind’s Gemini 2.5: A Historic Leap in AI Problem-Solving
- SpikingBrain 1.0: A Neuromorphic Paradigm for Efficient Large Language Models
- Hawaiʻi’s Quiet AI Revolution: The Summit That Could Reshape Tech Ethics in America
- Diella and the Dawn of AI Governance: Albania’s Bold Leap into the Future
Leave a Reply