Broadcom, Apollo, Blackstone Launch $35B AI Infrastructure Fund

Broadcom, Apollo Global Management, and Blackstone have formed a $35 billion financing platform to fund artificial intelligence infrastructure, marking what Apollo describes as the largest private financing transaction on record.

The AI XPV Platform launched Monday with its first tranche dedicated to building compute capacity for leading AI companies including Anthropic and OpenAI. The structure represents a novel approach to financing the massive capital requirements of frontier AI development.

How the financing works

Apollo's Atlas SP Partners unit created a special-purpose vehicle that purchased chips from Broadcom using a combination of debt and equity, then leased those chips to AI companies. The initial $35 billion was divided into three debt tranches with different risk profiles and returns.

The structure included $6 billion in A1 notes priced at 1 percentage point above Treasury rates, $24 billion in A2 notes carrying a 5.75% coupon, and $4.5 billion in B notes with an 8.5% coupon. The key differentiator: Broadcom guaranteed the two senior tranches, allowing investors to access borrowing costs reflecting Broadcom's creditworthiness. The B notes carried no such guarantee.

Under a residual value support agreement, Broadcom assumes responsibility for the full outstanding balance on A1 and A2 notes if a lessee stops payments and chip resale proceeds fall short of what's owed. Approximately half the total debt was distributed to other investors through syndication.

Initial deployment targets

The platform aims to enable more than 20 gigawatts of compute capacity using Broadcom's XPUs and networking solutions through 2028. The first transaction will support Anthropic's previously announced expansion of over 1 gigawatt of compute infrastructure, with deployment at Fluidstack-based sites expected to begin in mid-2026.

Why it matters

This financing structure creates a blueprint for channeling institutional capital into AI infrastructure at unprecedented scale. By treating AI compute as a lease-backed asset class with contracted cash flows, the platform addresses a critical bottleneck: frontier AI labs need massive compute capacity but face capital constraints, while institutional investors seek exposure to AI growth with defined risk parameters. The Broadcom guarantee on senior tranches effectively transforms chip leases into investment-grade instruments, potentially opening AI infrastructure investment to pension funds, insurance companies, and other conservative institutional buyers who previously lacked access to this market.

Apollo Partner Jamshid Ehsani characterized AI compute as "one of the most compelling new asset classes in finance, characterized by contracted cash flows, mission-critical utility and a supply-demand dynamic that continues to intensify." Broadcom CEO Hock Tan said the platform "synchronizes the world's most sophisticated capital with Broadcom's advanced technological roadmap."

Morgan Stanley served as lead advisor to Broadcom, with JPMorgan Chase as co-advisor. Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, and Citi advised Apollo on the transaction.

These details were first reported by AI Watch and Bloomberg.