Aligned Data Centers completes capital raise of over $12 billion

(Reuters) -Aligned Data Centers, which specializes in AI-related infrastructure, said on Wednesday it had completed another round of capital raise of more than $12 billion.

Artificial intelligence requires enormous computing power, pushing demand for specialized data centers that enable technology companies to link thousands of chips together in clusters.

The capital raise includes $5 billion of new primary equity — comprising funds managed by Macquarie Asset Management — and more than $7 billion of new debt commitments.

Plano, Texas-based Aligned said that the proceeds from the capital raise will be used in the development of its planned future capacity of over 5 gigawatts across Canada, North America and Latin America.

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The enormous uptake of AI, both in business and personal use, has prompted a host of companies, from startups to bellwether companies like Microsoft and Blackrock, to invest in AI data centers.

In September, the two companies said that they plan to launch a more than $30 billion fund to invest in AI infrastructure to build data centers and energy projects.

Earlier this month, Microsoft said that it is planning to pledge about $80 billion in fiscal 2025 on developing data centers to train AI models and deploy AI and cloud-based applications.

Crusoe, another AI infrastructure provider, secured $600 million in a late-stage funding round last month, valuing the startup at $2.8 billion.

(Reporting by Rishi Kant in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)