Australian AI factory developer and operator Firmus Technologies has secured a strategic equity investment from Maas Group Holdings, deepening its commitment to developing an Australian-based supply chain for AI infrastructure and reducing reliance on overseas manufacturing.
Announced in Sydney, the investment aligns Maas with Firmus’s long-term strategy to localise the design and production of core components used in AI facilities, spanning advanced manufacturing, construction and electrification. Firmus said the approach is intended to support faster and more reliable delivery of large-scale AI infrastructure while strengthening domestic industrial capability.
Over the past six months, Firmus has raised more than AUD 800 million in equity and committed over AUD 300 million to building its Australian AI factory supply chain. This includes long-term partnerships with mechanical systems specialist Benmax and Maas subsidiary JLE Group, covering cooling, power and integrated system modules.
According to Firmus, manufacturing capacity established through Benmax and Maas is designed to support delivery of up to 1.5 GW of AI facilities per year and create as many as 400 advanced manufacturing jobs. The company says these facilities will produce the core systems required for AI factories at industrial scale within Australia.
“Firmus’s co-designed AI Factory platform is being produced at scale in Australia,” said Tim Rosenfield, co-CEO of Firmus. “We work closely with global technology partners to define the performance, cooling and energy requirements of AI infrastructure from the ground up. Those designs are then manufactured and delivered through Australian industrial partnerships such as Maas and Benmax, who build the physical systems at scale.”
The investment has also drawn support from federal government. Assistant minister for science, technology and the digital economy Dr Andrew Charlton said the project highlighted the role of advanced manufacturing in supporting Australia’s digital economy. “By building advanced manufacturing capability here in Australia and supporting delivery of digital infrastructure, projects like this strengthen our industrial base, create skilled jobs and position Australia to compete in the global economy,” he said.
Benmax managing director Scott Polsen said the partnership had been five years in the making. “We’re now ramping up production capacity across both facilities to deliver AI Factory components at industrial scale. That’s supporting hundreds of long-term jobs in Australia, with many of those roles going to tradespeople who are reskilling into advanced manufacturing,” he said.
The announcement follows news last month that JLE Group secured an agreement valued at around AUD 200 million to deliver modular electrical infrastructure for a new 100 MW AI factory cluster in Launceston, with works expected to run through 2026. Firmus co-CEO Oliver Curtis said the broader goal was to create a delivery model capable of responding to AI demand in real time, positioning Australia as a builder of AI infrastructure rather than solely a host.