Blackstone has built a data centre portfolio valued at $200bn, including debt and projects under construction, as the alternative asset manager expands its investments across artificial intelligence infrastructure, according to Private Equity Wire citing a Bloomberg report. The portfolio has grown from $55bn in June 2024, driven by acquisitions and development projects including QTS Realty Trust and AirTrunk, according to Private Equity Wire.
Data centre portfolio growth and named assets
Blackstone’s data centre portfolio is valued at $200bn and includes debt and projects under construction, according to Private Equity Wire citing Bloomberg. The portfolio has grown from $55bn in June 2024, and the reported drivers were acquisitions and development projects including QTS Realty Trust and AirTrunk.
Blackstone acquired QTS for $10bn in 2021, initially targeting demand for cloud computing and digital infrastructure, according to the same report. The article identifies QTS Realty Trust and AirTrunk as part of the acquisitions and development projects associated with the portfolio’s growth.
AI-related financing and cloud venture partnership
Blackstone has expanded into AI-related financing, including loans secured against Nvidia and Broadcom chips, according to Private Equity Wire citing Bloomberg. The firm has also partnered with Google to establish Crux AI, which the report describes as a cloud computing venture.
The report also says Blackstone is investing in power generation, battery storage, transmission infrastructure and data centre cooling equipment to support growing demand for computing capacity.
Stakes in AI companies and internal deployment
Alongside infrastructure investments, Blackstone has acquired stakes in AI companies including OpenAI and Anthropic, according to the report cited by Private Equity Wire. The same report says Blackstone is deploying the technology across its portfolio of more than 280 companies.
Blackstone President Jon Gray told Bloomberg, “As an investor these are interesting times, because there’s just an enormous amount of transformation underway,” according to Private Equity Wire. Gray also told Bloomberg, “In the 1880s you would have lived in a world of wood, horses and candles,” and said, “And then, by the 1900s, you were in a world of steel and railroads and electricity… we are in one of those moments.”
AI investment committee adviser and cited risks
Blackstone has introduced an AI investment committee adviser trained on more than 14 years of internal investment records, and the report says it produces assessments alongside traditional investment team recommendations, according to Private Equity Wire citing Bloomberg.
The expansion has raised concerns about technology obsolescence, rising infrastructure costs and the concentration of private markets capital in AI-related assets, according to the report. Blackstone has also faced challenges in exiting data centre investments, with two portfolio companies recently postponing or abandoning planned listings in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the same report.
