Nvidia-backed consortium makes $40 billion AI data center deal

New York: A consortium led by asset manager BlackRock, including chip giant Nvidia and Microsoft is set to acquire data center specialist Aligned Data Centers from Australian financial services group Macquarie for approximately $40 billion.

The deal marks another sign of the tech sector's insatiable appetite for AI infrastructure, including chips, servers, and data centers that provide the computing storage and processing power required by artificial intelligence.

Founded in 2013, Aligned currently operates more than 50 data centers across the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, and Colombia, with a projected capacity exceeding 5 gigawatts.

Macquarie initially acquired a stake in the Texas-based company in 2018 through its subsidiary Macquarie Asset Management and subsequently increased its investment in 2020.

The acquiring consortium consists of BlackRock, Emirati sovereign tech fund MGX, and the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), a joint venture established by BlackRock in 2024 that includes BlackRock, MGX, Nvidia, and Microsoft.

AIP plans to raise $30 billion in direct investments and leverage debt to achieve a total investment capacity of $100 billion.

The partners have not disclosed how equity will be distributed among Aligned's new shareholders following the transaction's completion, expected in the first half of 2026.

"We are entering a new era in which AI will fundamentally reengineer our economies and enable accelerated growth," said Ahmed Yahia Al Idrissi, CEO of MGX and Vice Chairman of AIP, in a press release.

BlackRock CEO and AIP Chairman Larry Fink said the acquisition enabled its clients to participate in the growth of AI.