Peter Thiel is leading investment in an ocean data center powered by waves—and the startup is reportedly worth $1 billion

As hyperscalers like Alphabet look to the skies as the next frontier of data centers, Peter Thiel is looking to the seas. 

Panthalassa, a U.S.-based start up betting on ocean waves to power a fleet of floating data centers, announced $140 million in funding earlier this month led by Thiel.

The funding pushes Panthalassa’s valuation close to $1 billion, the Financial Times reported, citing a person familiar with the terms of the deal.

Panthalassa didn’t immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.

“The future demands more compute than we can imagine,” Thiel said in a statement announcing the funding. “Extra-terrestrial solutions are no longer science fiction. Panthalassa has opened the ocean frontier.”

Surging AI demand in the U.S. has hit snags with an aging and beleaguered grid system vulnerable to extreme weather. Energy analytics firm Wood Mackenzie noted in a report earlier this year that data center development has slowed down