Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Microsoft & BlackRock’s $30B Power Play
AI Investment | Sep 19, 2024
Image: Freepik/brgfx
Microsoft and BlackRock Team Up to Drive AI Infrastructure Expansion with $30 Billion Partnership
Microsoft and BlackRock have formed the Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership (GAIIP). The GAIIP alliance aims to attract $30 billion in private equity initially ($100 billion longer term) to develop and build the energy infrastructure and data centres required to power AI technology (primarily) in the United States. The alliance seeks to support innovation, job development, and economic growth and will prioritize sustainable energy sources.
Growing Energy Demands of AI
AI uses immense amounts of energy to handle large scale data processing, train AI models, and enable real-time AI services and agents. According to the International Energy Agency, by 2026 AI data centres could require up to 10 times more energy than they did in 2023. That energy spike will strain the current infrastructure and energy grid, which is already under pressure from attempts to move away from fossil fuels. Goldman Sachs estimates by 2030 AI power demand of data centres will increase by 160%.
See: Rising AI Energy Use: A Call for Sustainable Innovation
Last week, the White House met with AI industry leaders and energy executives to tackle the energy infrastructure gap, establishing a Task Force on AI Datacentre Infrastructure to expedite new data centre construction and align energy solutions with national security concerns. In the meeting, OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman, discussed spending tens of billions on energy infrastructure, and job creation.
Notably, China has been making significant investments in AI energy infrastructure. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has set targets to triple the capacity of its hyperscale data centre by 2025 while aiming to become a global leader robots, quantum computing, and AI solutions by 2027.
Conclusion
The race to create AI-powered, energy efficient systems is ramping up globally, with major players like the United States and China making significant advancements. This competition will result in great innovation, economic expansion, and a more sustainable future for the winner(s).
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