FortifAI (ASX:FTI) Advances AI Strategy with Megaport Collaboration

Aditi Sarkar

30 June 2026 02:37 PM AEST

FortifAI (ASX:FTI) Advances AI Strategy with Megaport Collaboration

Image Source: Shutterstock

You are reading a free article with opinions that may differ from the recommendation given by Kalkine in its paid research reports. Become a Kalkine member today to get access to our research reports, in-depth technical and fundamental research. Learn more

Start Your Free Trial Now!

Highlights

• FortifAI shares rose 6.36% to AUD 1.17 on 30 June 2026 following a collaboration update involving its Nol8 subsidiary.

• Nol8's AI Data Plane has joined the Megaport AI Exchange, enabling proof-of-concept deployments with selected customers.

• The collaboration combines Nol8's AI Data Plane with Megaport's Compute, Network and Storage infrastructure.

• Joint proof-of-concept programs are already underway ahead of Nol8's planned general availability later in 2026.

• Megaport's AI Exchange operates across a private software-defined network spanning more than 1,100 data centres worldwide.

FortifAI Limited (ASX:FTI) shares climbed 6.36% to AUD 1.17 during the afternoon session on 30 June 2026 after the company announced that its subsidiary, Nol8, had joined the Megaport AI Exchange through a collaboration with Megaport Limited (ASX: MP1). While the stock has already gained approximately 1,362.50% over the past year, today's increase appears to reflect investor interest in the latest milestone for Nol8's AI Data Plane as it progresses toward broader commercial availability.

The announcement can be viewed as favourable because it expands Nol8's access to enterprise customers through the Megaport AI Exchange and marks the start of proof-of-concept deployments on live customer workloads. However, the company also makes it clear that the AI Data Plane is not yet commercially available, with general availability planned later this year.

FortifAI is an ASX-listed technology company focused on artificial intelligence and advanced computing. Alongside its portfolio of video games, the company is developing AI technologies through its subsidiary Nol8, which is building an AI Data Plane designed to improve how data is delivered to AI infrastructure.

Collaboration Adds Nol8 to Megaport's AI Infrastructure Platform

The central announcement is FortifAI's collaboration with Megaport to integrate the Nol8 AI Data Plane into the Megaport AI Exchange.

According to the company, Megaport has spent the past year assembling an AI infrastructure stack covering compute, networking and storage services through its AI Exchange platform.

Under the collaboration, Nol8 contributes the AI Data Plane layer, allowing customers using the Megaport AI Exchange to begin proof-of-concept deployments before the product's planned general availability later in 2026.

The company stated that proof-of-concept deployments are already underway using live customer workloads.

AI Data Plane Targets Data Movement Bottlenecks

FortifAI explained that current AI infrastructure often relies on CPU arrays and middleware positioned between storage systems and graphics processing units (GPUs).

According to the company, these traditional approaches were developed for conventional computing workloads and are not designed to move data at the speed required by modern AI applications.

The company said this can leave GPU capacity idle despite growing demand for AI computing resources.

Nol8's AI Data Plane has been developed to address this layer by feeding GPUs at wire speed while simultaneously applying governance controls and enforcing policies before data reaches AI models.

The company believes this approach can improve utilisation of existing GPU infrastructure while maintaining governance requirements.

Proof-of-Concept Programs Now Underway

As part of the collaboration, Nol8 is now listed within the AI Exchange section of the Megaport Marketplace.

This allows Megaport's customer base to discover the AI Data Plane and begin proof-of-concept deployments alongside the compute, connectivity and storage services already available through the platform.

Megaport's software-defined private network currently spans more than 1,100 data centres globally, providing the infrastructure through which these proof-of-concept programs will be conducted.

The announcement states that proof-of-concept engagements are currently available to selected customers ahead of wider commercial rollout later this year.

Customer Trials Will Measure Operational Performance

The proof-of-concept deployments are intended to evaluate the operational impact of the AI Data Plane across customer workloads.

FortifAI said joint programs with selected customers will measure several operational metrics before and after implementation.

These include effective GPU utilisation, throughput, time-to-first-token and revenue generated per GPU hour.

According to the company, these assessments are intended to provide evidence of the value delivered by the AI Data Plane before broader commercial availability.

The annexure accompanying the announcement states that these proof-of-concept activities represent an important milestone in Nol8's product roadmap following the company's earlier announcement released on 16 February 2026.

Four Initial AI Use Cases Identified

FortifAI outlined four initial application areas that will be evaluated during joint proof-of-concept deployments.

The first focuses on agent-to-agent communication within agentic commerce, where autonomous buyers and sellers exchange information at machine speed while governance policies are applied during data transfer.

The second application covers pre-inference processing, including retrieval, preparation, classification and filtering of incoming data before it reaches AI models.

A third use case relates to post-inference processing, where governance, redaction and routing are applied to AI model outputs as they leave the GPU.

The fourth application area involves inline data governance, allowing sensitive information to be classified and governed while it moves through the system, enabling certain data previously restricted for compliance reasons to be used under defined policies.

Collaboration Builds on Megaport's AI Infrastructure

Megaport's AI Exchange already provides compute, network and storage capabilities for AI infrastructure.

The collaboration introduces Nol8's AI Data Plane as an additional layer within that technology stack.

Megaport Chief Executive Officer Michael Reid said AI is changing customer infrastructure requirements and noted that the company has developed compute, network and storage capabilities for AI workloads.

He stated that the collaboration with Nol8 adds another infrastructure layer designed to help ensure GPUs receive governed data efficiently through proof-of-concept deployments.

Nol8 Chief Executive Officer Kelly Herrell described Megaport as connecting global infrastructure and said the collaboration provides a pathway to bring the AI Data Plane to customers ahead of general availability later this year.

Commercial Availability Planned Later This Year

Although the AI Data Plane is now available for proof-of-concept deployments, FortifAI emphasised that the product has not yet entered full commercial release.

The company confirmed that general availability remains planned for later in calendar year 2026.

Interested customers can currently participate through selected proof-of-concept engagements available via the Megaport AI Exchange.

According to the company, the current phase is intended to generate operational evidence supporting future commercial adoption.

FortifAI Continues Expanding AI Technology Portfolio

The latest announcement reflects FortifAI's continued focus on artificial intelligence through its Nol8 subsidiary.

While the company also maintains a portfolio of video games, its AI strategy centres on developing technologies designed to improve infrastructure efficiency for AI workloads.

The AI Data Plane represents one component of that strategy by addressing how data moves between storage infrastructure and AI processing hardware.

The collaboration with Megaport provides access to an established AI infrastructure ecosystem while enabling customer evaluation ahead of commercial launch.

What This Means for Investors

FortifAI's latest announcement represents another development milestone for Nol8 rather than an immediate commercial revenue event. The collaboration places the AI Data Plane within the Megaport AI Exchange, allowing selected customers to begin proof-of-concept deployments on live workloads before broader availability later in 2026. The company will use these deployments to evaluate GPU utilisation, throughput and other operational metrics that could support future commercial adoption. Investors are likely to monitor the progress of these proof-of-concept programs and the planned transition to general availability later this year.

FAQs

Q: Why did FortifAI shares rise on 30 June 2026?

A: FortifAI shares gained 6.36% after announcing that its Nol8 AI Data Plane had joined the Megaport AI Exchange, with proof-of-concept deployments already underway for selected customers.

Q: What is the Nol8 AI Data Plane?

A: According to FortifAI, the AI Data Plane is designed to deliver data to GPUs at wire speed while applying governance and policy controls before data reaches AI models.

Q: Is the AI Data Plane commercially available?

A: No. The product is currently available for proof-of-concept deployments with selected customers, while general commercial availability is planned later in calendar year 2026.

Q: What will the proof-of-concept deployments measure?

A: The company said customer deployments will assess effective GPU utilisation, throughput, time-to-first-token and revenue per GPU hour before and after implementation.

Q: How extensive is the Megaport AI Exchange network?

A: The Megaport AI Exchange operates across a private software-defined network connecting more than 1,100 data centres worldwide.

Download Free Report – Explore 3 Stock Ideas & Industry Insights

Unlock 3 stock ideas and key industry insights in our free report. This information is general in nature and does not consider your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. It is not financial advice.

All investments involve risk—consider independent advice before making any investment decisions.

View 3 Research Reports

Disclaimer:

This article (“Article”) has been prepared by Kalkine Pty Limited (ABN 34 154 808 312) (Australian financial services licence number 425376) (“Kalkine”) and its related bodies corporate who are authorised to provide general financial product advice. Kalkine.com.au and its associated pages are published by Kalkine.

Any information/advice provided in this article is general in nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should therefore consider whether the information is appropriate for your objectives, financial situation and needs before acting upon it.

There may be a Product Disclosure Statement, Information Memorandum or other offer document (“Offer Document”) for the securities or other financial products referred to in Kalkine articles. You should obtain a copy of the Offer Document and consider it before making any decision about whether to acquire the security or financial product.

Kalkine strongly recommends that you seek advice from a financial adviser, stockbroker or other professional (including taxation and legal advice) before acting on any advice/information in this Article or on the Kalkine website. Not all investments are appropriate for all people.

The information in this Article and on Kalkine website has been prepared from a wide variety of sources, which Kalkine, to the best of its knowledge and belief, considers accurate. Kalkine has made every effort to ensure the reliability of the information contained in its articles (including this Article), newsletters and websites. All information represents our views at the date of publication and may change without notice.

The information in this Article does not constitute an offer to sell securities or other financial products or a solicitation of an offer to buy securities or other financial products.

Kalkine does not issue, sell or deal in any financial products.

This Article may contain information on past performance of particular investments. Please note past performance is neither an indicator nor a guarantee of future performance.

To the extent permitted by law, and excluding any dishonesty or gross negligence by Kalkine, Kalkine disclaims and excludes all liability for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential loss or damage arising from the use of or reliance on this Article, the Kalkine website and any information published on the Kalkine website without any warranties or representations by Kalkine to you. To the extent the law prohibits or limits this exclusion, Kalkine limits its liability to the resupply of services.

Please also read our Terms & Conditions and Financial Services Guide for further information.

Employees and/or associates of Kalkine and its related entities may hold interests in the securities or other financial products covered in this Article or on the Kalkine website. Any such employees and associates are required to comply with certain safeguards, procedures and disclosures as required by law.

Some of the images/music that may be used in the Article are copyright to their respective owner(s). Kalkine does not claim ownership of any of the pictures displayed/music used in the Article unless stated otherwise. The images/music that may be used in the Article are taken from various sources on the internet, including paid subscriptions or are believed to be in public domain. We have used reasonable efforts to accredit the source wherever it was indicated or was found to be necessary.

Kalkine Media Pty Ltd, an affiliate of Kalkine Pty Ltd, may have received, or be entitled to receive, financial consideration in connection with providing information about certain entity(s) covered on its website.