AI cloud unicorn Neysa plans an initial public offering by the end of 2027. CEO Sharad Sanghi said, “The Indian market itself is growing and maturing.” The Mumbai-based firm started in 2023 and currently has 12,500 live GPUs. It now aims to expand its computing capacity and build data centres.
Synopsis
Cofounder and CEO Sharad Sanghi told ET AI the firm is seeing demand from Indian customers and global companies looking to use India as a computing base with BFSI clients leading enterprise demand.
AI cloud unicorn Neysa has outlined a detailed near-term roadmap comprising plans to expand its Nvidia and AMD computing capacity, build its data centres and prepare for an initial public offering as soon as the end of 2027, cofounder and chief executive Sharad Sanghi told ET AI.
Currently, Neysa has 12,500 live graphics processing units (GPUs) and expects to take that number beyond 20,000 before March 2027, he said. While speaking to ET AI, Sanghi detailed the scale of the proposed additions, indicating the company was still in the process of ordering the chips.
“We are looking at a cluster of 9,216 Vera Rubin GPUs and a similar-sized cluster for Helios. We are also looking at ordering another 8,000 Blackwell GPUs this year,” he said.
The firm is also looking to introduce the latest Nvidia and AMD GPUs next year.
“We are already planning for Nvidia Vera Rubin and AMD Helios next year. Today, we offer Blackwell and we will continue to introduce new systems. We have shared that roadmap with the customers,” he said.
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The Mumbai-based company provides computing infrastructure and software for businesses to develop and run AI models and applications. Started in 2023 by Sanghi and former senior Netmagic executive Anindya Das, Neysa offers customers dedicated hardware, a cloud platform and access to AI models through software interfaces.
Sanghi explained the company is seeing demand from Indian customers and global companies looking to use India as a computing base. Banking and financial services lead enterprise demand; manufacturing, retail and healthcare, researchers, startups and software vendors are other customers.
“The Indian market itself is growing and maturing. Today, I can sell most of the capacity we acquire within India without having to go abroad. Domestic growth and global companies looking at India as a hub are both contributing to the expansion in GPU capacity,” he said.
Building data centres
Neysa is also exploring building its own data centres amid growing computing requirements. Sanghi said though the company was looking for land, it would continue using rented space in the near-term.
“We are looking at land and considering building our own facilities, but that would be about two years down the road. For the next two years, we will continue renting space,” he said.
The construction timeline would depend partly on how quickly Neysa secures the necessary permissions, Sanghi clarified.
“From acquiring land to obtaining permits and completing construction, it can easily take 24 months. It could take longer depending on environmental clearances and other approvals,” he added.
Sanghi, who built Netmagic before selling it to Japan’s NTT, said Neysa would draw on that experience. The planned facilities would support their own computing business instead of renting them out.
“We have done this several times for NTT and are now looking at it for ourselves. These data centres would be for our own use, rather than a colocation business,” he said.
IPO on the anvil
The expansion comes on the heels of Neysa’s preparations for an IPO, with Sanghi pointing to contracted computing capacity as an indicator of the company’s scale.
“We have already started preparing the company. We have sold capacity on more than 12,000 GPUs to end customers. I cannot disclose a revenue number, but that gives you a sense of the scale. Most of these are Blackwell GPUs or AMD equivalents,” he said. “With that kind of revenue, we are looking at an IPO. If all goes well, it could happen as early as the end of next year.”
In February, Blackstone and Neysa announced a $1.2 billion financing plan led by the US alternative asset manager, split equally between primary equity and debt. ET had reported, citing people familiar with the transaction, that Neysa’s enterprise valuation stood at $1.4 billion.
The investment would give Blackstone majority ownership, although Sanghi clarified it had not reached that threshold yet. It would do so after completing its entire $600 million investment, he said.
To protect the economics of its expansion, Neysa buys about 90% of its GPUs against long-term contracts, Sanghi said. Customers must pay for the capacity they book even if they do not use it.
“We have agreements with global customers and Indian companies at rates that give us a reasonable return on investment. If I have a four-year take-or-pay contract, the customer pays the agreed amount whether or not it uses the GPUs,” he said.
Sanghi acknowledged that long-term contracts do not eliminate the risk of customers failing financially. Neysa assesses whether buyers can pay over four or five years and avoids deals that do not meet its criteria.
Malaysia over Japan
Neysa is likely to expand to Malaysia before Japan as it looks for more data centre space to serve global customers, Sanghi said.
“Malaysia is more likely because power is difficult to secure in Japan and building a data centre there can take three years. Capacity in Japan is scarce,” he said. “Companies such as AirTrunk are building capacity in Malaysia and we are looking at when we can access more space there. Malaysia is likely to move faster, but we remain open to other opportunities.”
But, Neysa has not completely ruled out opportunities in Japan.
“We are looking at Malaysia right now. But if a good opportunity comes up in Japan, we will consider it. We have a strong relationship with NTT, and if it can provide suitable capacity in Japan, we will look at that as well,” he said.
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