Polaris Forge 2: Applied Digital's (APLD) $3B Bet on AI Data Center Growth

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) is one of the AI Stocks In The Spotlight For Investors. On August 18, the company announced that it plans to start building its next AI data center —the Polaris Forge 2—near Harwood, North Dakota, in September 2025. The $3 billion, 280-megawatt (MW) AI Factory is expected to begin operations in 2026 and reach full capacity in 2027.

Following the success of Applied Digital’s Polaris Forge 1 Ellendale campus, the facility will begin with 280MW initial capacity with the ability to scale beyond.

The said project has emerged due to the increasing demand for AI computing capacity, particularly fueled by the growing interest from hyperscalers, enterprises, and research organizations.

“We believe Polaris Forge 2 represents the next stage in Applied Digital’s rapid growth and our position as a leader in delivering high-performance AI infrastructure. The demand for AI capacity continues to accelerate, and North Dakota continues to be one of the most strategic locations in the country to meet that need. We have strong interest from multiple parties and are in advanced negotiations with a U.S. based investment-grade hyperscaler for this campus, making it both timely and prudent to proceed with groundbreaking and site development. We believe this new campus will strengthen our operations, increase our ability to scale, and create lasting value for both our customers and the communities we serve.” -Wes Cummins, CEO of Applied Digital.

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) is a technology company engaged in designing, developing, and operating digital infrastructure solutions and cloud services in high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence.

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