Neoclouds vs Hyperscalers: The Rise of AI-First Infrastructure (What It Means for You)

Welcome to the New Era of Cloud: Built for Artificial Intelligence

The world of cloud computing is shifting and fast.

A new generation of cloud providers is emerging, purpose-built for the demands of artificial intelligence. If you’ve come across names like CoreWeave, Lambda, Voltage Park, or Crusoe, you’ve already seen this shift in action. These aren’t general-purpose cloud platforms trying to match AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud feature-for-feature.

They’re a different kind of cloud provider, cloud platforms built specifically for AI workloads, with a strong focus on GPU infrastructure and performance.

This evolution matters. As organisations across every sector invest in AI, the infrastructure that powers those workloads is becoming more specialised, more performance-driven, and more strategic than ever before.

If your organisation is building or scaling AI, understanding the Neocloud model will help you design infrastructure that’s faster, more flexible, and fit for the future.

What You’ll Learn in This Article

Explore each section or click through to the topic that matters most to you:

What Is a Neocloud Provider?
How Neoclouds Differ From Hyperscalers
Why Are Neoclouds Growing So Fast?
But There Are Challenges
Why It Matters for Organisations Everywhere
Why NEXTDC Is the Natural Fit for Neocloud Expansion

What Is a Neocloud Provider?

Neoclouds are a new class of cloud solution, purpose-built for the AI era. Unlike traditional hyperscalers that offer a wide range of general-purpose services, Neoclouds focus on just one thing: delivering high-performance infrastructure for AI workloads.

Interestingly, many of these companies, like CoreWeave and Crusoe got their start in crypto mining, where GPU power was essential. As demand for AI exploded, they pivoted, repurposing those massive GPU fleets to support AI training, inference, and real-time applications across industries.

Where traditional cloud providers optimise for versatility, Neoclouds specialise in raw performance. That includes:

• Access to faster, modern GPUs — no months-long procurement wait

• High-speed networking and storage — built for fast data movement

• Optimisation for intensive AI workloads — like generative AI, robotics, simulation, and autonomous systems

And they’re not on the fringe, Neocloud providers are now among NVIDIA’s largest customers, purchasing huge volumes of next-gen GPUs like the Blackwell platform to meet global AI demand¹.

How Neoclouds Differ From Hyperscalers

While hyperscalers aim to support every type of workload across every industry, Neoclouds are built specifically for the demands of AI. Here’s how they compare: 

Neoclouds don’t try to be everything to everyone.

Instead, they’re purpose-built to help organisations train models faster, run AI applications more efficiently, and deliver high-performance computing without the overhead of general-purpose cloud platforms.

Why Are Neoclouds Growing So Fast?

Several key trends are driving their rise:

• AI workloads are exploding. From chatbots to medical imaging to real-time language translation, organisations are pushing more complex AI into production.
• Startups and researchers need power without the overhead. Neolouds let them “rent” powerful GPUs without building their own infrastructure.
• Hyperscaler lead times are long. In some regions, it can take months to secure high-density AI compute from traditional providers.
• Neoclouds can move faster. With lean teams, agile infrastructure, and a focused value prop, they often deploy in days or weeks².

But There Are Challenges

Neoclouds aren’t immune to obstacles. As demand for AI infrastructure surges, many are navigating real headwinds, including:

• Infrastructure constraints: AI workloads can require over 100kW per rack, advanced liquid cooling, and high-throughput networking. Not all data centres are built for this level of density
• Geopolitical barriers: U.S. export controls, tariffs, and semiconductor restrictions are disrupting global chip availability and cross-border deployments³.
• Data sovereignty: For sectors like finance, government, and healthcare, where data lives and how it's managed is critical to compliance and trust.
• Global scale limitations: Many Neoclouds are still concentrated in the U.S. and Europe. Expanding into Asia-Pacific requires trusted local partnerships, sovereign infrastructure, and the ability to meet regional compliance and performance standards.

Why It Matters for Organisations Everywhere

Whether you’re training AI models, embedding AI into your products, or simply using AI tools, understanding Neocloud solutions opens up new infrastructure options, especially as demand surges and global supply chains tighten.

Here’s why it matters:

• Faster access to GPUs: You don’t always have to wait on AWS or Microsoft. Neocloud platforms often provide quicker access to top-tier GPUs, reducing time-to-deployment.
• Smarter regional deployments: If you’re operating in Australia or Asia-Pacific, Neocloud solutions can integrate with AI-ready data centres like NEXTDC, helping you reduce latency, improve performance, and control costs.
• Support for sovereign AI: Some Neocloud providers are already partnering with government, education, and research sectors to deliver onshore, compliant AI infrastructure for sensitive workloads.

For any organisation looking to stay competitive in the AI era, Neoclouds represent a faster, more focused, and more flexible alternative to traditional cloud infrastructure.

Why NEXTDC Is the Natural Fit for Scaling Neocloud Infrastructure

Neocloud solutions demand infrastructure that’s fast, dense, secure, and sovereign. NEXTDC delivers on all fronts, with the flexibility and performance required to support the next generation of AI platforms.

Here’s why organisations choose NEXTDC:

Strategic data centre locations in every major Australian capital city, close to population hubs

Rack densities up to 150kW, with liquid cooling available and designs underway to support up to 600kW per rack

Cloud-neutral connectivity and subsea cable access for ultra-low latency performance

Certified sovereign compliance, including ISO and Tier IV Uptime Institute standards

Certified NVIDIA DGX-Ready Data Center, optimised for high-performance AI workloads

Multi-award-winning provider, including the PTC Innovation Award and Frost & Sullivan Winner: Outstanding Data Centre Company

Want to see how this works in action?

Read how SharonAI scaled GPU-as-a-Service with NEXTDC — Read the case study

Ready to Build Smarter with AI?

Discover how NEXTDC can help you deploy high-performance, AI-optimised infrastructure across Australia, faster, more securely, and ready to scale.

 Contact the NEXTDC team

Sources

¹ https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/data-center/blackwell/
² https://www.semianalysis.com/p/ai-cloud-capacity-snap-back-aws-vs-coreweave
³ https://www.perkinscoie.com/en/news-insights/interim-final-rule-us-restrictions-on-exporting-ai-models.html