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 a report by Bloomberg.
The portfolio has grown from $55bn in June 2024, driven by 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.
The firm has since expanded into AI-related financing, including loans secured against Nvidia and Broadcom chips, and has partnered with Google to establish Crux AI, a cloud computing venture.
Blackstone is also investing in power generation, battery storage, transmission infrastructure and data centre cooling equipment to support growing demand for computing capacity.
Alongside these infrastructure investments, Blackstone has acquired stakes in AI companies including OpenAI and Anthropic, while deploying the technology across its portfolio of more than 280 companies.
The firm has introduced an AI investment committee adviser trained on more than 14 years of internal investment records, which produces assessments alongside traditional investment team recommendations.
However, the expansion has raised concerns about technology obsolescence, rising infrastructure costs and the concentration of private markets capital in AI-related assets.
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.
