Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella addressed the company’s Build developer conference in Seattle on May 21, 2024, emphasizing the role of collaboration in advancing innovation in artificial intelligence.
Microsoft, along with BlackRock and other companies, is part of the Global Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Investment Partnership (GAIIP), which aims to pool up to $100 billion to develop data centers and the necessary energy infrastructure for AI. The partnership was announced in a press release and includes participants such as Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), which is in the process of being acquired by BlackRock, and MGX, a tech investor based in the United Arab Emirates.
In a statement, Nadella expressed Microsoft’s commitment to driving economic growth through AI, highlighting the initiative’s goal to combine financial and industry expertise to build sustainable infrastructure. The group plans to gather $30 billion in initial capital, with a long-term objective of reaching up to $100 billion through debt financing.
This collaborative effort comes amid a broader industry push to develop data centers equipped with Nvidia GPUs, designed to run generative AI models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. These GPUs require significant power, creating challenges in establishing new facilities due to high demand.
Microsoft’s investment in this initiative adds to its existing capital expenditures for the expansion of its Azure public cloud, which supports OpenAI and other AI clients. The company reported $19 billion in capital expenditures, including finance lease assets, for the fiscal fourth quarter.
In related developments, BlackRock announced its intention to acquire GIP for $3 billion in cash and approximately 12 million shares of BlackRock common stock in January. The acquisition is expected to close on October 1. MGX was launched in March by Mubadala and AI firm G42 as key partners.
This partnership highlights a strategic move by leading companies to invest heavily in AI infrastructure, reflecting the growing importance and demand for advanced AI capabilities.