Brookfield Asset Management Acquires Ori Industries to Launch AI Chip Rental Venture
Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. has completed the acquisition of cloud-computing firm Ori Industries, merging it into a newly established company named Radiant. This strategic move represents a significant bet on the escalating artificial intelligence race, as governments and technology companies increasingly seek efficient access to critical hardware.
Addressing Market Demand for Cost-Effective AI Infrastructure
The newly formed Radiant will specialize in providing on-demand access to AI chips through a "GPU-as-a-service" model. This approach aims to meet the needs of customers eager to reduce capital expenditures and avoid prolonged waiting periods for chip procurement. Brookfield's initiative comes as other infrastructure investors have largely avoided substantial bets in this sector, wary of potential volatility if chip values decline or technology becomes obsolete.
"I think of it as a leasing business," explained Sikander Rashid, Brookfield's head of AI infrastructure. "Hopefully we are the first of many who will unlock large-scale capital to the theme."
Structured Contracts and Sovereign Cloud Focus
Radiant will work primarily with companies and governments looking to build highly controlled computing environments known as sovereign clouds, where data is prevented from crossing national borders. The company plans to structure contracts with investment-grade customers to lock in rental payments across the estimated five-year lifespan of each chip, even if clients no longer require the hardware.
"We will not be taking any technology risk in this business," Rashid emphasized, highlighting Brookfield's strategy of mitigating potential losses through well-defined agreements.
Multibillion-Dollar AI Infrastructure Fund
Radiant represents one of the initial investments from Brookfield's newly established multibillion-dollar AI infrastructure fund. The asset manager is actively seeking approximately US$10 billion in investor commitments, with expectations that additional investments and debt could expand the initiative to as much as US$100 billion.
This specialized fund targets higher returns than Brookfield's flagship infrastructure offerings, reflecting the elevated risk profile associated with financing projects built from the ground up for the burgeoning AI industry.
Industry Context and Competitive Landscape
Brookfield joins other major financial players including Blackstone Inc. and BlackRock Inc. in the race to finance the power, hardware, and infrastructure driving artificial intelligence development. The company estimates that AI will require approximately US$7 trillion in capital investment, with computing infrastructure alone accounting for about US$3 trillion of that total.
Brookfield's existing investments in data-center operators and power utilities position the firm to capitalize on surging energy demands from AI operations. The AI fund has already committed up to US$5 billion to Bloom Energy Corp., with plans to deploy that company's fuel cells at data centers supporting AI workloads.
This acquisition and subsequent launch of Radiant demonstrates Brookfield's confidence in the long-term growth of AI infrastructure, despite broader industry caution about the "GPU-as-a-service" model. The move represents a calculated expansion of the firm's existing infrastructure portfolio into the specialized realm of artificial intelligence hardware provisioning.
