DigitalBridge Group’s infrastructure expertise is now becoming part of SoftBank Group’s artificial intelligence strategy through a $4 billion acquisition, the companies announced. The transaction reflects billionaire Masayoshi Son’s recognition that specialized knowledge in infrastructure will be critical to success in the AI era.
The deal provides SoftBank with substantially increased exposure to digital infrastructure, which encompasses the physical and network assets necessary for AI technologies to function at scale. Son has been directing SoftBank’s investments toward artificial intelligence, characterizing it as the most significant technological transformation in a generation. The massive growth in demand for computing resources to power AI applications has created lucrative opportunities in infrastructure, which DigitalBridge’s expert team and portfolio address.
DigitalBridge invests across critical digital infrastructure sectors including datacenters, cell tower networks, fiber systems, small-cell infrastructure, and edge computing facilities. The portfolio includes prominent companies like Vantage Data Centers, Zayo, Switch, and AtlasEdge. Founded in 1991 as Colony Capital with a focus on traditional real estate, the firm underwent a complete transformation under CEO Marc Ganzi’s leadership, exiting legacy property investments and adopting the DigitalBridge name in 2021.
Following the acquisition, Ganzi and his expert team will continue leading DigitalBridge, with the platform operating as a separately managed entity within SoftBank. The value of this expertise is reflected in the scale: DigitalBridge managed approximately $108 billion in assets as of September 30, establishing it as one of the world’s largest dedicated investors in digital infrastructure. This brings both assets and deep industry knowledge to SoftBank.
SoftBank’s AI infrastructure strategy encompasses additional major projects. The company is a core partner in the Stargate project, collaborating with OpenAI, Oracle, and MGX, a technology investor headquartered in Abu Dhabi. This ambitious initiative involves billions of dollars in investments to construct large-scale computing infrastructure purpose-built for advanced AI development. The project includes plans for five computing facilities in Texas, New Mexico, and Ohio with approximately 7 gigawatts of total power capacity.
