In a move that signals Saudi Arabia’s growing role in the global digital economy, AirTrunk, Asia Pacific’s leading data center platform backed by Blackstone, has announced a strategic partnership with HUMAIN, the Kingdom’s national artificial intelligence company, to build hyperscale data centers across Saudi Arabia.

The collaboration will begin with an estimated $3 billion investment in a data center campus, supporting the country’s ambition to become a global innovation and AI hub.

HUMAIN, owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), brings national AI leadership and end-to-end capabilities to the partnership, while AirTrunk contributes its extensive operational expertise serving cloud and AI clients across the Asia Pacific. The alliance combines deep financial strength and technical know-how from global investors, including Blackstone and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

“This partnership marks a pivotal moment in creating scalable, secure, and sustainable data center capacity to support the rapid growth of AI and cloud computing. This initiative not only accelerates Saudi Arabia’s technological advancement but also establishes a platform for long-term economic diversification and global competitiveness,” said Tareq Amin, CEO of HUMAIN. 

Robin Khuda, Founder and CEO of AirTrunk, described the partnership as a catalyst for Saudi Arabia’s transformation into a data- and AI-driven economy. “We’re combining HUMAIN’s end-to-end AI capabilities with AirTrunk’s hyperscale data center expertise to deliver world-class digital infrastructure across one of the fastest-growing regions in the world,” he said.

Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman, CEO, and Co-Founder of Blackstone, added that the initiative aligns with the firm’s global commitment to the AI revolution. “This initiative reinforces Blackstone’s position as one of the world’s leading investors in digital infrastructure and marks a commitment to deepening our presence in the Middle East,” he said.

The long-term partnership will focus on financing, developing, and operating next-generation data centers and AI infrastructure across the Kingdom. It also aims to develop local talent, attract global hyperscalers and enterprise clients, and advance Saudi Arabia’s goal of building a sustainable and globally competitive digital ecosystem.