Japan’s SoftBank Expands AI Footprint with $4 Billion Deal to Acquire DigitalBridge Including Debt

The race to secure the physical backbone of artificial intelligence is accelerating, and SoftBank is placing another large bet on the infrastructure powering the next wave of computing growth.

SoftBank Deepens Its Bet on AI Infrastructure

SoftBank Group has agreed to acquire digital infrastructure investor DigitalBridge Group in a deal valued at about $4 billion, strengthening its exposure to data centres and connectivity assets that support artificial intelligence.

The Japanese investment firm will pay $16 per share in cash for all outstanding common stock, a 15 per cent premium to DigitalBridge’s closing price on 26 December 2025.

The transaction, approved unanimously by a special committee of DigitalBridge’s board, is expected to close in the second half of next year, subject to regulatory approvals.

A Deal Driven by the Need for Compute Power

Masayoshi Son, SoftBank’s founder, chairman and chief executive, has made AI the central focus of the group’s strategy, seeking to capitalise on rising demand for computing capacity, power and connectivity.

Son said in a statement,

“As AI transforms industries worldwide, we need more compute, connectivity, power, and scalable infrastructure.”

He added that the deal “will strengthen the foundation for next-generation AI data centres” and support SoftBank’s ambition to become an “Artificial Super Intelligence” platform provider.

Market Reaction and Valuation Details

DigitalBridge shares rose about 9.7 per cent to $15.27 on Monday, trading just below the offer price.

The stock had already surged earlier in the month after Bloomberg News reported that acquisition talks were under way.

While the equity value stands at roughly $2.9 billion, the overall transaction value reaches about $4 billion when including debt.

DigitalBridge reported around 189 million diluted shares and equivalents outstanding at the end of the third quarter.

Who Is DigitalBridge and Why It Matters

DigitalBridge is one of the world’s largest dedicated investors in digital infrastructure, managing about $108 billion in assets as of 30 September.

Its portfolio spans data centres, cell towers, fibre networks, small-cell systems and edge infrastructure.

Key holdings include Vantage Data Centers, Switch, AtlasEdge, Zayo, DataBank, Yondr Group and AIMS, giving SoftBank access to a broad ecosystem of assets critical to AI workloads and cloud services.

Originally founded in 1991 as Colony Capital with a focus on real estate, the firm shifted strategy under chief executive Marc Ganzi.

It shed most legacy property assets and rebranded as DigitalBridge in 2021.

Leadership Continuity and Investor Perspective

Ganzi will continue to lead DigitalBridge as a separately managed platform following the acquisition.

Ganzi said,

“The buildout of AI infrastructure represents one of the most significant investment opportunities of our generation.”

He added that SoftBank’s “vision, capital strength, and global network will allow us to accelerate our mission with greater flexibility, invest with a longer-term horizon on behalf of our investors, and better serve the world’s leading technology companies as they scale their AI ambitions”.

Not all observers see the deal as transformational on its own.

Jacob Yahiayan, chief executive of DigitalBridge investor Urban Logistic Advisory Services, said the acquisition “is certainly a milestone in solving critical infrastructure issues”.

He noted that SoftBank remains far from controlling 10 per cent of the global hardware- and software-as-a-service market.

Part of a Wider AI Infrastructure Push

The acquisition fits into SoftBank’s broader push into AI and computing infrastructure.

The group is a key backer of the Stargate project alongside OpenAI, Oracle and Abu Dhabi-based investor MGX.

The project is a large-scale effort to build computing and power capacity for advanced AI development.

OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank said in September that they plan to build five new computing sites across Texas, New Mexico and Ohio.

The sites are expected to have a combined power capacity of about seven gigawatts once operational.

To fund its AI ambitions, SoftBank has also reshuffled parts of its portfolio.

The firm recently sold its entire stake in US chipmaker Nvidia for $5.83 billion to make room for increased investment in OpenAI and related projects.

A Growing Wave of AI Infrastructure Deals

The DigitalBridge agreement comes as global investment in AI infrastructure accelerates.

Recent transactions include BlackRock’s $40 billion purchase of Aligned Data Centers.

Oracle has also agreed to supply OpenAI with up to 4.5 gigawatts of computing power in a deal that could be worth as much as $300 billion.

For SoftBank, the takeover adds scale, relationships and assets at a time when access to data centres and power has become one of the main constraints on AI growth.