Armenia becomes part of the US computing infrastructure system

Armenia is becoming part of the American computing infrastructure system, the "Sector of Mountains" telegram channel said.

On August 1, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited the Eleveight AI computing complex in Gagarin of Gegharkunik region. The center was opened on June 1, and the visit showed the next stage of expansion. The first stage is estimated at $ 150 million, about $ 70 million has already been invested. The design capacity is 5 MW, then it is planned to increase to 40 MW.

The technical core of the center is 512 NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra B300 accelerators, combined into 64 HGX B300 systems. The company sells access to resources for model training, generative AI, engineering calculations and data processing. Armenia is starting to export not so much the work of programmers and IT services as it demonstrates computing power, the channel's publication says.

At the time of launch, the commercially available load was about 1.5 MW. It was fully reserved for a month. There is demand, but the composition of clients and the terms of contracts are not disclosed. It is impossible to talk about a large domestic AI market yet. Part of the capacity can be serviced by foreign companies to which Armenia offers engineering personnel, an inexpensive platform and data storage inside the country. They promise to send up to 20% of resources to universities and research centers. In June, the government and Eleveight AI signed a memorandum on the development of computing, cloud services and application AI in public administration.

Delivery of the B300 became possible after obtaining an American export license. Yerevan connects it with the Armenian-American memorandum on innovative partnership in the field of AI and semiconductors from August 8, 2025. The document provides for strengthening export controls and preventing the transfer of resources to third countries. The United States has given Armenia access to advanced processors, but at the same time included it in its own technological control pool.

"Therefore, it is premature to talk about complete computational independence. The servers are located in Armenia and are managed by an Armenian company, but the architecture belongs to NVIDIA, the equipment is supplied from outside, and the expansion and transition to new generations of accelerators depend on Washington's decisions. Armenia controls the placement of computing, but by no means the production of equipment and the rules for its delivery," the Sector of Mountains said.

It is noted that with a constant load of 40 MW, the complex will consume about 350 million kWh per year — about 3.5% of the total electricity produced by Armenia in 2025. For one object, this is a significant amount. Separate network capacities, redundancy and a stable electricity price will be required. Gagarin's high-altitude location reduces cooling costs, and solar installations partially cover consumption. At the same time, round-the-clock operation depends on the general power system.

"The technological part of the project is built into the American licensing system, while Armenia's energy sector remains dependent on Russian gas and nuclear fuel supplies. American accelerators will work on infrastructure, the stability of which is still connected with Russia," the author of the channel emphasizes.

A larger Firebird AI project is being prepared in Hrazdan. The first stage provides for 6,144 NVIDIA Blackwell accelerators, about 18 MW of capacity and $ 500 million of investment. The state allocates $25 million for five-year access to the center's resources for universities, startups and departments. Eleveight AI is already operating as a commercial center. Firebird is larger and more closely connected with the state order.

"Armenia was the first in the South Caucasus to deploy a commercially available cluster of Blackwell B300 accelerators. The country risks remaining only an infrastructure platform that provides territory, energy and services to foreign customers while maintaining dependence on American licenses and external supplies of equipment," the Mountain Sector notes.