Catenaa, Sunday, January 04, 2026- SoftBank Group has agreed to acquire US-based data center investor DigitalBridge for $4 billion, aiming to expand its portfolio in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The Japanese conglomerate, led by billionaire Masayoshi Son, has focused heavily on AI-related investments, citing the technology’s potential to transform business and society.
SoftBank has previously backed ventures such as Stargate, a large-scale AI infrastructure project, alongside OpenAI and other partners.
The company has faced delays and financing questions with Stargate but continues to pursue acquisitions to strengthen its computing capabilities.
Despite recent share declines fueled by AI bubble concerns, Son remains confident in the sector’s long-term prospects.
Analysts say the DigitalBridge deal will boost SoftBank’s access to high-performance data centers critical for AI workloads, cloud computing, and enterprise applications.
The acquisition highlights growing competition among global tech firms to secure infrastructure for AI development.
Data centers are increasingly considered strategic assets as demand for processing power surges with large-scale AI models, machine learning platforms, and enterprise adoption.
SoftBank’s expansion into AI infrastructure complements its broader investment strategy, which includes software, cloud platforms, and next-generation computing technologies. The deal also positions the company to leverage synergies between its existing AI projects and DigitalBridge’s US-based facilities.
