BlackRock, Nvidia-Led Consortium Acquires Aligned Data Centers in $40 Billion Deal to Fuel AI Infrastructure

BlackRock and Nvidia in $40bn data centre takeover to power AI growth

An investment consortium that includes BlackRock, Nvidia, xAI and Microsoft has struck a $40bn takeover of one of the world's largest data centre operators, as it launches an initiative to underwrite the infrastructure for artificial intelligence. The investment consortium, which also includes BlackRock's affiliate Global Infrastructure Partners and Abu Dhabi fund MGX, will acquire Texas-based Aligned Data Centers from Macquarie Asset Management, in its first deal since the partnership was formed a year ago. The investment group will utilise a $100bn data centre capital pool they created, called the AI Infrastructure Partnership, to combine the capabilities of large tech players and specialised investment groups. The partnership is securing the capital and high-performance semiconductors, industrial materials and energy needed to quickly build data centres as the demand for the computing power needed for AI algorithms outstrips existing capacity. The consortium's backers also include Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek and the Kuwait Investment Authority. Large suppliers to data centre manufacturers such as GE Vernova, utility NextEra Energy and Cisco are also members. The partnership is hoping a combination of large investment dollars and the specialised technological skills of its members can help alleviate a scarcity of land, energy and materials needed to build large data centres for OpenAI, Google, Meta Platforms and others. The investment group has earmarked $30bn in equity and a further $70bn in debt financing to buy and build data centre companies. Its planned takeover of Aligned Data Centers is the first in what could be a series of large acquisitions and construction projects in the sector. The consortium plans to expand Aligned quickly in the coming years, more than doubling its 50 data centre campuses in the US and Latin America. "Together, we can address critical questions: how to design the right data centres, how to solve water and energy challenges, and how to respond to customers' needs. That's what's unique about the partnership -- it hasn't been replicated anywhere else," Adebayo Ogunlesi, co-founder of GIP, said in an interview with the Financial Times. Larry Fink, chief executive of BlackRock, told the FT the data centre partnership planned to build and lease highly specialised data centres to large technology companies, instead of such customers building the properties themselves. These projects, ultimately financed by pensioners and sovereign wealth funds, will allow tech giants to keep data centres off their balance sheets, helping them command higher stock valuations. The BlackRock founder also said Wednesday's deal was evidence of the benefits of its large acquisitions in private capital such as its $12.5bn takeover of GIP last year. "To me, this is a perfect marriage of Abu Dhabi's ecosystem and its commitment to AI, combined with the strength of BlackRock and GIP," Fink said. Ahmed Yahia Al Idrissi, chief executive of MGX, said the partnership could ultimately supply significant new data centre capacity going online in the coming years. "We very much believe that the requirements for global capacity build-out -- both from a cloud and AI perspective -- are massive. We're talking about roughly 20 gigawatts a year globally, and about half of that would be in the U.S," he said.

BlackRock, Nvidia-backed group strikes $40 billion data center deal to fuel AI boom

Oct 15 (Reuters) - An investment consortium that includes BlackRock (BLK.N), opens new tab, Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab, xAI and Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab will acquire Aligned Data Centers in a deal worth $40 billion, the companies said on Wednesday. The deal underscores an intensifying race to expand the costly, supply-constrained infrastructure required to power artificial intelligence technology, as companies rush to build the most sophisticated AI models. The acquisition follows a slew of mega-deals focused on securing coveted compute capacity. ChatGPT creator OpenAI has in recent weeks unveiled agreements totaling about 26 gigawatts of computing capacity, enough to power roughly 20 million U.S. homes. The investment consortium, dubbed the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), has an initial target of deploying $30 billion of equity capital, with the potential of reaching $100 billion, including debt. This is AIP's first investment. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026. "With this investment in Aligned Data Centers, we further our goal of delivering the infrastructure necessary to power the future of AI, " said Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock and chairman of AIP. AIP's anchor investors also include the Kuwait Investment Authority and Singapore's state-owned investor Temasek. Aligned designs, builds and operates data centers for the hyperscalers, neocloud and enterprises. Its portfolio includes 50 campuses and more than 5 gigawatts of operational and planned capacity, including assets under development, located across the U.S. and Latin America. Aligned will remain headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and will be led by CEO Andrew Schaap. OpenAI last week unveiled a 6-gigawatt AI chip supply deal with AMD (AMD.O), opens new tab that includes an option to buy a stake in the chipmaker, days after disclosing that Nvidia plans to invest up to $100 billion in the startup and provide it with data center systems with at least 10 gigawatts of capacity. Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

BlackRock, Nvidia-backed group strikes $40 billion data center deal to fuel AI boom - The Economic Times

The deal underscores an intensifying race to expand the costly, supply-constrained infrastructure required to power artificial intelligence technology, as companies rush to build the most sophisticated AI models.An investment consortium that includes BlackRock, Nvidia, xAI and Microsoft will acquire Aligned Data Centers in a deal worth $40 billion, the companies said on Wednesday. The deal underscores an intensifying race to expand the costly, supply-constrained infrastructure required to power artificial intelligence technology, as companies rush to build the most sophisticated AI models. The acquisition follows a slew of mega-deals focused on securing coveted compute capacity. ChatGPT creator OpenAI has in recent weeks unveiled agreements totaling about 26 gigawatts of computing capacity, enough to power roughly 20 million U.S. homes. The investment consortium, dubbed the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), has an initial target of deploying $30 billion of equity capital, with the potential of reaching $100 billion, including debt. This is AIP's first investment. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026. "With this investment in Aligned Data Centers, we further our goal of delivering the infrastructure necessary to power the future of AI, " said Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock and chairman of AIP. AIP's anchor investors also include the Kuwait Investment Authority and Singapore's state-owned investor Temasek. Aligned designs, builds and operates data centers for the hyperscalers, neocloud and enterprises. Its portfolio includes 50 campuses and more than 5 gigawatts of operational and planned capacity, including assets under development, located across the U.S. and Latin America. Aligned will remain headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and will be led by CEO Andrew Schaap. OpenAI last week unveiled a 6-gigawatt AI chip supply deal with AMD that includes an option to buy a stake in the chipmaker, days after disclosing that Nvidia plans to invest up to $100 billion in the startup and provide it with data center systems with at least 10 gigawatts of capacity.

Nvidia, BlackRock part of group acquiring data center operator in $40B deal

An investment consortium that includes BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), xAI (X.AI) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) has planned a $40B takeover of one of the world's largest data center operators, the Financial Times reported. The investment consortium, which includes BlackRock's affiliate Global Infrastructure The consortium aims to quickly scale data center capacity to meet growing AI demand and lease these specialized facilities to large tech companies, keeping assets off their balance sheets for better valuations. They intend to use $30B in equity and $70B in debt to execute acquisitions and rapid expansion, with plans to more than double Aligned's 50 campuses in the U.S. and Latin America. Tech companies can keep data centers off their balance sheets, improving stock valuations and allowing for focused capital allocation.

BlackRock, Nvidia-backed group strikes $40 bil. data center deal to fuel AI boom - The Korea Times

An investment consortium that includes BlackRock, Nvidia, xAI and Microsoft will acquire Aligned Data Centers in a deal worth $40 billion, the companies said on Wednesday. The deal underscores an intensifying race to expand the costly, supply-constrained infrastructure required to power artificial intelligence technology, as companies rush to build the most sophisticated AI models. The acquisition follows a slew of mega-deals focused on securing coveted compute capacity. ChatGPT creator OpenAI has in recent weeks unveiled agreements totaling about 26 gigawatts of computing capacity, enough to power roughly 20 million U.S. homes. The investment consortium, dubbed the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), has an initial target of deploying $30 billion of equity capital, with the potential of reaching $100 billion, including debt. This is AIP's first investment. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026. "With this investment in Aligned Data Centers, we further our goal of delivering the infrastructure necessary to power the future of AI, " said Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock and chairman of AIP. AIP's anchor investors also include the Kuwait Investment Authority and Singapore's state-owned investor Temasek. Aligned designs, builds and operates data centers for the hyperscalers, neocloud and enterprises. Its portfolio includes 50 campuses and more than 5 gigawatts of operational and planned capacity, including assets under development, located across the U.S. and Latin America. Aligned will remain headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and will be led by CEO Andrew Schaap. OpenAI last week unveiled a 6-gigawatt AI chip supply deal with AMD that includes an option to buy a stake in the chipmaker, days after disclosing that Nvidia plans to invest up to $100 billion in the startup and provide it with data center systems with at least 10 gigawatts of capacity.

BlackRock, Nvidia-backed AI consortium to buy Aligned Data Centers in US$40 billion deal

An investment consortium that includes BlackRock, Nvidia, xAI and Microsoft will acquire Aligned Data Centers in a deal worth US$40 billion, the companies said on Wednesday. The deal underscores an intensifying race to expand the costly, supply-constrained infrastructure required to power artificial intelligence technology, as companies rush to build the most sophisticated AI models. The acquisition follows a slew of mega-deals focused on securing coveted compute capacity. ChatGPT creator OpenAI has in recent weeks unveiled agreements totaling about 26 gigawatts of computing capacity, enough to power roughly 20 million U.S. homes. The investment consortium, dubbed the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), has an initial target of deploying $30 billion of equity capital, with the potential of reaching $100 billion, including debt. This is AIP's first investment. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026. "With this investment in Aligned Data Centers, we further our goal of delivering the infrastructure necessary to power the future of AI, " said Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock and chairman of AIP. AIP's anchor investors also include the Kuwait Investment Authority and Singapore's state-owned investor Temasek. Aligned designs, builds and operates data centers for the hyperscalers, neocloud and enterprises. Its portfolio includes 50 campuses and more than 5 gigawatts of operational and planned capacity, including assets under development, located across the U.S. and Latin America. Aligned will remain headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and will be led by CEO Andrew Schaap. OpenAI last week unveiled a six-gigawatt AI chip supply deal with AMD that includes an option to buy a stake in the chipmaker, days after disclosing that Nvidia plans to invest up to $100 billion in the startup and provide it with data center systems with at least 10 gigawatts of capacity.

BlackRock's AI Consortium to Buy Aligned Data Centers in $40 Billion Deal

BlackRock's new artificial-intelligence infrastructure consortium agreed to acquire Aligned Data Centers from Macquarie Asset Management in a deal valuing the company at about $40 billion. The buyer group also includes Mubadala Investment's MGX and BlackRock's Global Infrastructure Partners. The companies said Wednesday the transaction ranks among the largest data-center deals ever and is expected to close in the first half of 2026, pending regulatory approvals. Dallas-based Aligned, one of the fastest-growing hyperscale data center operators in the Americas, provides infrastructure for cloud and AI companies. It operates or is developing about 50 campuses with a total of 5 gigawatts of operational and planned capacity across the region. The deal marks the first investment for the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership, founded by BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners, MGX, Microsoft and Nvidia to expand the capacity of AI infrastructure and help shape the future of AI-driven economic growth. The group aims to raise as much as $100 billion in capital to expand data-center and energy infrastructure supporting AI growth. Macquarie first invested in Aligned in 2018 and expanded its stake in 2020. Under its ownership, the company grew from two sites to a continental platform, Macquarie said.

BlackRock, Nvidia-backed group strikes $40 billion AI data center deal

(Reuters) -An investor group, including BlackRock and Nvidia, will buy Aligned Data Centers from Macquarie Asset Management in a deal worth $40 billion, the companies said on Wednesday, as AI infrastructure expansion powers on. The deal underscores an intensifying race to expand the costly, supply-constrained infrastructure required to develop artificial intelligence technology, as companies rush to build sophisticated AI models. The acquisition follows a slew of mega-deals focused on securing coveted compute capacity. ChatGPT creator OpenAI has in recent weeks unveiled agreements totaling about 26 gigawatts of computing capacity, enough to power roughly 20 million U.S. homes. The investment consortium, dubbed the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), has an initial target of deploying $30 billion of equity capital, with the potential of reaching $100 billion, including debt. This is AIP's first investment, and the transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2026. "With this investment in Aligned Data Centers, we further our goal of delivering the infrastructure necessary to power the future of AI," said Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock and chairman of AIP. AIP also includes xAI and Microsoft, along with the Kuwait Investment Authority and Singapore's state-owned investor Temasek as anchor investors Aligned designs, builds and operates data centers for hyperscalers, neoclouds and enterprises. Its portfolio includes 50 campuses and more than 5 gigawatts of operational and planned capacity, including assets under development, located across the U.S. and Latin America. Aligned will remain headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and will be led by CEO Andrew Schaap. HEFTY INVESTMENTS Aligned's $12 billion fundraising earlier this year was one of the largest private capital injections into a data center company. But the scale of financing required to keep pace with demand is only growing. The capital-intensive undertaking of expanding AI infrastructure has attracted hundreds of billions of dollars in investment from big tech companies, startups, private equity and infrastructure funds. OpenAI last week unveiled a 6-gigawatt AI chip supply deal with AMD that includes an option to buy a stake in the chipmaker, days after disclosing that Nvidia plans to invest up to $100 billion in the startup and provide it with data center systems with at least 10 gigawatts of capacity. Morgan Stanley estimates big cloud companies, including Alphabet, Amazon.com, Meta, Microsoft and Coreweave, are on track to spend $400 billion on AI infrastructure this year. Despite investor concerns about returns from these hefty investments, Big Tech has pledged to spend more on boosting data center capacity. Also, a recent spike in interconnected investments in the AI industry has raised questions over the circularity of the market. Nvidia, one of the key investors in recent AI deals, is also one of the biggest suppliers to the market, dominating the graphics processor industry. (Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)