BlackRock has raised $12.5 billion for its partnership with Microsoft

Microsoft Corp. is using its partnership with BlackRock to co-fund and accelerate its AI infrastructure development, reducing the direct burden on its funds. BlackRock has now raised $12.5 billion of its total $30 billion goal for its AI infrastructure partnership with Microsoft. 

BlackRock is investing in the power grids and energy sources needed to keep modern data centers running. They require so much constant and high-voltage power that industry experts estimate that data centers could consume up to 4% of all global energy by 2029. 

How is BlackRock supporting Microsoft’s AI plan? 

BlackRock Inc. has successfully raised $12.5 billion as part of its massive “Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership” with Microsoft Corp. The firm is now closer to its $30 billion goal for private equity investment. 

The company combined Global Infrastructure Partners’ (GIP’s) expertise with Microsoft’s technology to solve the “energy bottleneck” that threatens to slow down AI development. Larry Fink told analysts that mobilizing private money for these projects is the only way to meet the demand, as the costs are too high for any single government or company to handle alone.

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink explained to analysts during a fourth-quarter earnings call that the AI partnership continues to attract a lot of money from investors who want to profit from the current tech boom.

BlackRock recently reported that its total assets under management have hit $14 trillion for the first time due to record net inflows of nearly $700 billion over the full year of 2025. Fink described the current period as a time of “accelerating momentum.” 

He also added that clients are increasingly approaching BlackRock to handle complex infrastructure projects that require billions of dollars in upfront cash.

Companies are investing in physical AI infrastructure 

Microsoft recently signed a 20-year deal with Constellation Energy to restart a nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. The project, called the Crane Clean Energy Center, will provide carbon-free electricity for Microsoft’s data centers. 

Investments like these in AI infrastructure have hurt Microsoft’s stock, with its shares dropping to $459 from a high of $555 in 2025. Investors have grown wary of the company’s strategy after it spent nearly $35 billion in a single quarter to build AI infrastructure. 

Through its partnership with BlackRock, Microsoft will be able to scale and develop its AI technology without putting the burden fully on its balance sheet. 

Meta also recently announced its own deals with three nuclear energy companies to secure 6.6 gigawatts of power. 

BlackRock’s partnership with Microsoft also includes Nvidia Corp. and the Abu Dhabi-backed investment group MGX. Additionally, Elon Musk’s xAI joined the partnership in early 2025. 

Nvidia functions as a technical advisor and helps to design the data centers so they are optimized for AI chips, while MGX provides massive amounts of capital from the United Arab Emirates.

This collaboration allows the group to use “leverage,” which means taking on debt to increase their total spending power. While the initial goal is $30 billion in private equity, the partnership expects to eventually reach $100 billion in total investments. This money will primarily be spent in the United States, but some will also go to U.S. partner countries.

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