Former Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg and NScale CEO Josh Payne Talk Nscale

Summary

Podcast Summary: Bloomberg Talks — Former Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg and NScale CEO Josh Payne Talk Nscale
Date: March 23, 2026
Host: Bloomberg (Caroline)
Guests: Sheryl Sandberg (Former Meta COO, Nscale Board Member & Advisor), Josh Payne (CEO, Nscale)

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on the meteoric rise of Nscale, a UK-based AI data center developer, and explores the unique infrastructure powering the next wave of artificial intelligence. Fresh off a $2 billion funding round that values the company at $14.6 billion, CEO Josh Payne and high-profile board addition Sheryl Sandberg discuss Nscale’s ambitious vision, operational strategy, commitment to diversity and clean energy, as well as the global expansion of AI infrastructure.

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Key Topics & Insights

1. The Urgency for AI Infrastructure

[01:35]

• Josh Payne describes the scale and importance of the current technological moment:
  • “This is the fourth industrial revolution. This market is moving so fast and we're still at the beginning. We're talking about a technology that is going to lead to automized automated drug discovery, the extension of human life, truly autonomous agents. And the only thing that prevents that future is access to the scarce resource, which is the compute. And so N Scale solves this problem.”
• Nscale’s primary mission: to build, deploy, and operate the critical AI compute infrastructure the world needs.

2. Sheryl Sandberg's Motivation to Join Nscale

[02:22]–[04:18]

• Sheryl shares initial reluctance and what changed her mind:
  • “The funny part of the story starts with his part, which is, well... so thinking about how I build the next great platform, what was most important to me is speaking to executives that have built great platforms before of global scale... I tried for some time to get an introduction to Sheryl and upon finally doing so, we scheduled a 30 minute call and the first thing she said to me was, ‘I don't do boards and I don't do these calls.’” (Josh Payne, [02:29])
  • “But what I saw in Josh, 90 minutes into our 30 minute phone call, was what I considered real visionary leadership. Over the next few weeks... he went away and he wrote a letter to his management team. And the only person I'd ever seen write like that was Mark Zuckerberg. This combination of a relentless, relentless desire for greatness, relentless desire for execution... So the opportunity to work with a founder I believe in, I joined right as the company was about 300, 400 people. So that same spot and try to take some of the lessons we've learned and help a company. I believe in this much. Scale really matters.” (Sheryl Sandberg, [03:18])
• Sandberg’s faith in AI's potential:
  • “AI is going to mean that anyone in a remote village, anywhere in the world, could get skin cancer diagnosed at the same efficacy rate as someone in the Mayo Clinic. But that is going to take a build out and a build out of infrastructure and compute.” ([03:53])

3. What Sets Nscale Apart: Vertical Integration

[04:18]–[05:32]

• Josh Payne highlights Nscale’s unique approach:

  • “We are fully vertically integrated... the true scarcity, given the demand in the sector, is the land, the power and then, and then the chips. And so by and large, the NEO cloud sector is not really vertically integrated in that they don't own their own land and power. Nscale does.” ([04:37])
  • Nscale owns the land, the power sources, the chips, and the software, providing an end-to-end product.

• Acquisition news:

  • “We recently acquired a company called American Intelligence Corporation in West Virginia, which adds an even further segment to that, which is the ownership of the power... means it's not connected to the local grid and therefore subject to any kind of price increases for consumers.” ([05:02])

4. Sandberg’s Role, Impact and Diversity Focus

[05:32]–[07:16]

• Operational involvement:
  • “I've joined as both a board member, as an advisor. I'm spending real time with Josh and his team. I have no plans to go on board for time. They have an incredible exec team and my goal is to help them scale, help figure out how we structure, how we do corporate governance.” ([05:56])
• Building a strong, diverse team:
  • “A really strong team of senior women—head of infrastructure, CFO, head of security... Josh before me hired who he considers the best people. A lot of great women in those jobs.” ([07:07])

5. Sustainability and Clean Energy

[07:16]–[09:04]

• Sandberg and Payne discuss Nscale’s steps toward sustainability:
  • “The company thesis is to take sustainable energy and convert it into intelligence. So we first do this in the north of Norway. We operate in the north of Norway using only hydropower... But the challenge is it can't be exported and so it's got to be consumed in region. So Nscale is building some of the largest infrastructure projects on the European continent in the north of Norway, taking otherwise stranded energy and converting it to intelligence.” (Josh Payne, [07:38])
  • Texas: similarly leveraging abundant renewables in remote areas.
  • West Virginia: unique creation of energy using behind-the-meter natural gas generators to avoid grid strain and price impacts.

6. Nscale’s Expanding Global Vision

[09:04]–[10:13]

• Global ambitions and operations:
  • “Certainly this is global, right? This is a global company started in London and continuing to expand all over the world.” (Sheryl Sandberg, [09:37])
  • “Today we're operating in five countries. We have plans for 15... North America is the center of the universe for artificial intelligence... as Cheryl said, this is a global market and I'm spending most of my time on a plane as a result.” (Josh Payne, [09:49])

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Notable Quotes

• Josh Payne, on the AI revolution:
  • “This is the fourth industrial revolution... the only thing that prevents that future is access to the scarce resource, which is the compute.” ([01:35])
• Sheryl Sandberg, on joining Nscale:
  • “The only person I'd ever seen write like that was Mark Zuckerberg. This combination of a relentless, relentless desire for greatness, relentless desire for execution.” ([03:18])
• Sheryl Sandberg on AI’s impact:
  • “AI is going to mean that anyone in a remote village, anywhere in the world could get skin cancer diagnosed at the same efficacy rate as someone in the Mayo Clinic.” ([03:53])
• Josh Payne on differentiated strategy:
  • “By and large, the NEO cloud sector is not really vertically integrated in that they don’t own their own land and power. Nscale does.” ([04:37])
• Sheryl Sandberg on diversity:
  • “A really strong team of senior women—head of infrastructure, CFO, head of security... A lot of great women in those jobs.” ([07:07])
• Josh Payne on global reach:
  • “We’re operating in five countries. We have plans for 15... this is a global market and I'm spending most of my time on a plane as a result.” ([09:49])

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Timeline / Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:44]: Introduction — Nscale’s recent growth and round of funding
• [01:35]: Josh Payne outlines Nscale’s mission in the fourth industrial revolution
• [02:22]–[04:18]: Sheryl Sandberg recounts her introduction to Nscale & why she joined
• [04:18]–[05:32]: Vertical integration and strategic acquisitions
• [05:32]–[07:16]: Sandberg’s board/advisor role, company’s diversity leadership
• [07:16]–[09:04]: Sustainability strategies in Norway, Texas, and West Virginia
• [09:04]–[10:13]: Global ambitions and the significance of the US/Europe/Middle East

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Memorable Moments

• Sheryl Sandberg initially refused the board call: “I don’t do boards and I don’t do these calls.” ([02:53])
• The switch from a scheduled 30-minute call to a 90-minute conversation that led to her joining.
• The clear focus from both guests on building infrastructure that is clean, sustainable, and inclusive.

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This episode provides a comprehensive look into Nscale’s rise, with deep insights from two tech leaders—offering listeners a window into the future of AI, the infrastructure arms race, global business expansion, and high-level operational leadership.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

of AI for that you need infrastructure and talk about that now. N Scale, a UK developer for AI data centers, is now one of Europe's most valuable startups after raising $2 billion in a recent round, which now values the company and a cool $14.6 billion. Now the hyperscalers are also looking to because they want to be looking for more compute. But also they've got some significant leaders coming in, directors including former British politician Nick Clegg, Sheryl Sandberg as well longtime chief operating officer at Facebook and its parent Matter. And I'm very pleased to say we can welcome the leadership now. Nscale CEO Josh Payne along with Sheryl Sandberg. It is a joy to have you both on the show. And Josh, some huge ambitions from N Scale and just the computing power that you can bring online, the revenues you're going to be generating the next few years. Just talk to us about how you achieve that, that necessary infrastructure.

[C]

Josh well, thank you Caroline. It's great to be here. You know, firstly what I'll say is this is the fourth industrial revolution. This market is moving so fast and we're still at the beginning. We're talking about a technology that is going to lead to, you know, automized automated drug discovery, the extension of human life, truly autonomous agents. And the only thing that prevents that future is access to the scarce resource, which is the compute. And so N Scale is solves this problem. We buy and build and deploy all of that infrastructure to allow for these products to be built and operated. And so not only is there just huge demand for the sector, but we're

[B]

capturing it and there's huge demand for your expertise, Cheryl, and to join boards. Why why did you choose Josh? Why did you back N Scale? Why on the board?

[D]

Well, the funny part of the story starts with his part, which is, well,

[C]

so thinking about how I how I build the next great platform, what was most important to Me is speaking to executives that have built great platforms before of global scale, and so certainly none better than Sheryl Sandberg. And so I tried for some time to get an introduction to Sheryl and upon finally doing so, we scheduled a 30 minute call and the first thing that she said to me was, I don't do boards and I don't do these calls.

[E]

Right.

[D]

So it was an inauspicious beginning, but I didn't do boards and I didn't do these calls. But what I saw in Josh, 90 minutes into our 30 minute phone call, was what I considered real visionary leadership. Over the next few weeks, as he was trying to get me to consider joining the board, he went away and he wrote a letter to his management team. And the only person I'd ever seen write like that was Mark Zuckerberg. This combination of a relentless, relentless desire for great, relentless desire for execution from my point of view. I joined Google when it was at 250 people left, at 20,000. I joined Facebook when it was 550 people. I left, you know, almost 100,000. So the opportunity to work with a founder I believe in, I joined right as the company was about 300, 400 people. So that same spot and try to take some of the lessons we've learned and help a company. I believe in this much. Scale really matters. I also really believe in the power of AI. I think we're at the very beginning I started my career in global health. AI is going to mean that anyone in a remote village, anywhere in the world could get skin cancer diagnosed at the same efficacy rate as someone in the Mayo Clinic. But that is going to take a build out and a build out of infrastructure and compute. And I really believe in Josh and N Scale's ability to do that. So I'm happy to be here.

[E]

Josh. The term NEO cloud has actually also become quite broad. When I talk to people about N Scale, they say, well, N Scale is modular. How do you set yourselves apart from the other NEO Clouds out there? Many of many of them come on this program and make quite similar pitches.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

So I think the key distinction withinscale is we are fully vertically integrated. Again, if you think about the challenge for the sector, it's actually landing the infrastructure on the ground and getting it plugged in. And the true scarcity, given the demand in the sector is the land, the power and then, and then the chips. And so by and large, the NEO cloud sector is not really vertically integrated in that they don't own their own land and power. Nscale does we own the land and power, we own the chips and we own the software delivering an end to when service to the counterparty. In addition, we recently acquired a company called American Intelligence Corporation in West Virginia, which adds an even further segment to that, which is the ownership of the power. This is a behind the meter site, which means that we're effectively taking natural gas and producing our own energy, which means it's not connected to the local grid and therefore subject to any kind of price increases for consumers.

[E]

Cheryl, it's great to have you back. On Bloomberg Television and on Bloomberg Tech you said I don't do boards historically with this, with this role with N Scale. I think a lot of people are really interested if you go back to being an operator. You know, with time, if you would join the exact executive ranks at N scale and whether you do or don't, kind of operationally how you think you can help the company grow.

[D]

So I've joined as both a board member, as an advisor. I'm spending real time with Josh and his team. I have no plans to go on board for time. They have an incredible exec team and my goal is to help them scale, help figure out how we structure, how we do corporate governance. I've helped recruit some other great board members. Nick Clegg you mentioned joined the board with me, Sue Decker, who has decades of experience chairing audit committees and in the financial world and work with them to really scale their company. What I see in Josh is two things is real ambition, like real ambition to make a difference in how the AI build out happens, make it sustainable, make it clean. Commitment to local jobs as we scale and build, but also a commitment to excellence, to hiring the best people, to getting people into the right jobs, to structuring so that we can really execute. And it's, it's been, it already has been a great pleasure to work this closely with someone I believe in. And also, Caroline, I know you always care about this. A really strong team of senior women, head of infrastructure, cfo, head of security. Josh before me hired what he considers, who he considers the best people. A lot of great women in those jobs.

[B]

I love that because it's something I'm passionate about. Something that you spent your career advocating for, Cheryl, is diversity within the ranks of talent. But also you're advocating as well for clean energy. And I, I notice you got one other board say with Terror dot and that is about carbon neutrality. So Josh, I ask you, what about carbon neutrality for Virginia? Because that's about natural gas. How do you think about that in the longer term, sure.

[C]

So broadly, the company thesis is to take sustainable energy and convert it into intelligence. So we first do this in the north of Norway. So we operate in the north of Norway using only hydropower. The north of Norway has such a large oversupply of energy due to basically the seasons. Effectively, during the winter, all of the glaciers melt over and then in the summer, they all melt and create enormous waterfalls. And the Norwegian government has built large hydropower dams to capture that energy. But the challenge is it can't be exported and so it's got to be consumed in region. So N scale is building some of the largest infrastructure projects on the European continent in the north of Norway, taking otherwise stranded energy and converting it to intelligence. The same goes for our projects in Texas as an example. In Texas, you've got a similar oversupply of renewables and other energy, but it's in remote locations. So we're building some of the largest infrastructure projects in North America in this location in order to convert that to intelligence. Now in West Virginia, we're doing the same thing, but slightly different. In West Virginia, we're producing our own energy. One of the challenges with the North American grid is constrained. And so we felt that producing our own energy with natural gas generators that is behind the meter was the best way to scale sustainably but also not impact local prices and the grid.

[E]

Cheryl, you're very used to being inside companies that are just truly global, right? Listening to what Josh is saying, nscale gets a lot of credit because it's, it's a kind of a leader in Europe, it is footprint in the United Kingdom. But we've just been talking about America. How much do you want Josh, I know he's sitting next to you, to shift gears a little bit and move this company and himself to the US do you want him to focus on the Middle east, where there is the capital, there is the will, there is energy supply, for example?

[D]

Well, I'll let him answer that, but certainly this is global, right? This is a global company started in London and continuing to expand all over the world.

[C]

Yes. I mean, today, today we're operating in five countries. We have plans for 15. Naturally, North America is the center of the universe for artificial intelligence, both with startups, with larger customers, with. With access to capital. And so naturally, I spend a lot of my time here, but as Cheryl said, this is a global market and I'm spending most of my time on a plane as a result.

[E]

That's a very familiar tale that your peers have told us on this program to nscale CEO Josh Payne and SCALE Board member and advisor Sheryl Sandberg. It's great to have you both on the program.

[A]

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