SoftBank Group’s $4 billion acquisition of DigitalBridge Group reflects an intensifying arms race for control of artificial intelligence infrastructure assets. The transaction, confirmed by both parties, is part of founder Masayoshi Son’s broader campaign to establish SoftBank as the preeminent investor in infrastructure supporting AI technologies.
The deal provides SoftBank with dramatically expanded exposure to digital infrastructure, which forms the essential foundation for AI technology deployment at scale. Son has been directing SoftBank’s strategy toward artificial intelligence, viewing it as a once-in-a-generation technological opportunity. The explosive demand for computing capacity to train and run AI applications has made infrastructure investments highly valuable, which DigitalBridge’s specialized portfolio captures.
DigitalBridge’s investment focus covers critical digital infrastructure sectors including datacenters, cell towers, fiber networks, small-cell systems, and edge infrastructure. Portfolio companies include industry leaders such as Vantage Data Centers, Zayo, Switch, and AtlasEdge. The company’s journey from its 1991 origins as Colony Capital, a real estate investment firm, to its current incarnation occurred under CEO Marc Ganzi, who orchestrated the comprehensive exit from traditional property holdings and the 2021 rebrand.
Following the acquisition, Ganzi will continue as CEO with DigitalBridge maintaining its operational independence as a separately managed platform. The financial scale is impressive: DigitalBridge oversaw roughly $108 billion in assets at the end of September, positioning it among the largest institutional investors focused exclusively on digital infrastructure. This provides SoftBank with immediate access to substantial assets and industry expertise.
SoftBank’s AI infrastructure commitment extends across multiple initiatives. The company is a principal backer of the Stargate project alongside OpenAI, Oracle, and MGX, a technology investment firm based in Abu Dhabi. This collaborative effort involves multi-billion-dollar investments in large-scale computing infrastructure designed specifically for advanced AI development. The project includes plans for five computing centers in Texas, New Mexico, and Ohio with approximately 7 gigawatts of total power capacity.