The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s push to become a global leader in artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure reached a significant milestone today with the announcement of a major strategic partnership between HUMAIN, the Kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund-backed AI company, and AirTrunk, the Asia-Pacific’s top hyperscale data center specialist, which is backed by private equity giant Blackstone.
This collaboration is set to establish modern, AI-ready data centers in the Kingdom, beginning with an initial, massive US$3 billion investment for a data center campus.
The long-term partnership will see HUMAIN, owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and AirTrunk, supported by Blackstone and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, focusing on the financing, development, and operation of next-generation digital and AI infrastructure across Saudi Arabia. This move marks AirTrunk’s first expansion into the strategically vital Middle East market, leveraging Blackstone’s position as the world’s largest data center investor and AirTrunk’s deep expertise in building and operating large-scale, efficient hyperscale campuses for global technology companies.
Tareq Amin, Chief Executive Officer of HUMAIN, emphasized the significance of the venture, stating that the partnership will strengthen the technological infrastructure underpinning the Kingdom’s digital economy. He highlighted that the initiative is a “pivotal moment” for creating the scalable, secure, and sustainable data center capacity necessary to support the rapid adoption of AI and cloud computing, ultimately accelerating Saudi Arabia’s technological advancement and establishing a platform for long-term economic diversification.
Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman, CEO & Co-Founder of Blackstone, underscored the firm’s commitment, noting they are “thrilled to help power this next era of innovation in the Middle East.” He stressed that the AI revolution remains one of Blackstone’s highest conviction themes, and this partnership, reinforcing its position in digital infrastructure, enables AirTrunk’s crucial expansion.
The collaborative effort will see HUMAIN top national efforts for large-scale AI infrastructure, while AirTrunk will bring global expertise to the development process. Key areas of cooperation will include data center design, construction, operation, financing, and joint go-to-market initiatives aimed at attracting major hyperscalers and enterprise clients to the new campuses.
Furthermore, a significant focus of the partnership will be the development of local talent and capabilities, aligning perfectly with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 objective to build a globally competitive and sustainable digital ecosystem. The initial $3 billion investment signals a strong intent to rapidly deploy the necessary compute power to position the Kingdom as a major global hub for artificial intelligence.
