DigitalBridge Group’s infrastructure assets are moving to SoftBank Group in a $4 billion deal focused on artificial intelligence, both companies confirmed. The acquisition represents founder Masayoshi Son’s ongoing campaign to position SoftBank as the preeminent investor in infrastructure supporting AI development.
This transaction dramatically increases SoftBank’s presence in digital infrastructure, which forms the physical foundation for AI technology deployment. Son has been systematically redirecting SoftBank’s investment portfolio toward artificial intelligence, characterizing it as a transformational technological shift that occurs once in a generation. The unprecedented growth in demand for computing capacity to power AI applications has created lucrative opportunities in infrastructure, which DigitalBridge’s specialized portfolio captures.
DigitalBridge’s investment strategy encompasses critical digital infrastructure including datacenter properties, telecommunications towers, fiber optic networks, small-cell wireless systems, and edge computing facilities. The company’s holdings include industry-leading entities like Vantage Data Centers, Zayo, Switch, and AtlasEdge. Founded in 1991 as Colony Capital with a traditional real estate focus, the firm underwent a complete strategic transformation led by CEO Marc Ganzi, divesting legacy property investments and rebranding as DigitalBridge in 2021.
Under the acquisition agreement, Ganzi will continue as CEO with DigitalBridge operating as an independently managed platform. The magnitude of the business is considerable: DigitalBridge managed approximately $108 billion in assets at the end of September, making it one of the largest dedicated investors in digital infrastructure globally. This provides SoftBank with immediate scale and credibility in a rapidly growing sector.
SoftBank’s AI infrastructure strategy encompasses additional major projects beyond DigitalBridge. The company is a key participant in the Stargate project, collaborating with OpenAI, Oracle, and MGX, a technology investor based in Abu Dhabi. This ambitious initiative involves billions of dollars in investments to construct large-scale computing infrastructure purpose-built for advanced AI development. Current plans include five computing sites in Texas, New Mexico, and Ohio with a combined power capacity of about 7 gigawatts.