KKR JV Launches $10B AI Infrastructure Company

KKR is teaming up with the Kuwait Investment Authority, NVIDIA and Vistra to launch Helix Digital Infrastructure.

Backed by more than $10 billion in initial long-duration capital commitments, the new company is designed to be a one-stop shop for the development of data centers and the power to operate them.

Helix will invest in and manage assets critical to enabling artificial intelligence buildout, including hyperscale data center development and operations; baseload and flexible power generation; transmission and distribution infrastructure; and fiber and connectivity infrastructure, among other assets.

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Adam Selipsky, former CEO of Amazon Web Services, will serve as co-founder and CEO. Waldemar Szlezak, KKR’s global head of digital infrastructure, will be the chief investment officer.

In addition to being one of the anchor investors, NVIDIA will serve as a strategic partner, supporting the deployment of its DSX AI factory-aligned infrastructure. Vistra, an integrated power generation and electricity company with operations across 18 states and Washington, D.C., will be the preferred power provider for Helix investments. Vistra has executed more than 5,000 megawatts of power purchase agreements with hyperscalers.

Following the closing of the founding commitments, Helix will be open to additional eligible institutional investors.

KKR noted in prepared remarks that AI is driving the largest infrastructure buildout in modern history, with trillions of dollars in investment needed to meet the demand over the next decade. However, the scale and complexity of financing and coordinating the buildout, including accessing power, is creating a bottleneck for hyperscalers.

During an interview with CNBC Thursday, Selipsky said Helix intends to “smash that bottleneck.” He stated more than 25 percent of announced data center projects are not delivering, and that number seems to be increasing.

Selipsky said Helix combines significant long-term capital with operational expertise and strategic partnerships with NVIDIA and Vistra across technology and power. The team believes this will enable the company to build, design and operate the infrastructure solutions needed by hyperscalers with speed and scale.

Private equity’s growing digital investments

Helix is supported by KKR’s global infrastructure platform, which includes more than $100 billion in infrastructure assets under management and more than $70 billion invested across digital and power assets. KKR is funding its anchor investment in Helix through its balance sheet and other managed vehicles.

KKR is just one of several large private equity firms with major investments in data centers and AI-related infrastructure.

In March 2022, KKR and BlackRock-owned Global Infrastructure Partners acquired data center developer and operator CyrusOne for $15 billion. In 2024, KKR and CyrusOne formed a $50 billion strategic partnership with Energy Capital Partners for data center investment, development and solutions to meet hyperscalers’ demand.

The joint venture announced its first project in July 2025–a $4 billion hyperscale data center in Bosque County, Texas, which will total 190 megawatts at full buildout.

Earlier this year, KKR invested $1.5 billion in Global Technical Realty, a U.K.-based developer and operator of European data centers. At the same time, Oak Hill Capital provided roughly $400 million to GTR.

Blackstone is another major investor in global AI and digital infrastructure. The private equity giant acquired QTS in 2021, giving it a data center portfolio valued at more than $70 billion with a prospective development pipeline exceeding $100 billion.

In its most recent data center-related deal, a joint venture between Blackstone and QTS Realty Trust’s affiliates are set to obtain a $1.3 billion CMBS refinancing for a 432,824-square-foot data center in New Albany, Ohio, near Columbus. The deal is expected to close later this month. It also comes soon after QTS announced plans to develop a $10 billion, 400-acre data center campus in Van Wert, Ohio.

Last year, Blackstone and PPL Corp. formed a joint venture to build gas-fired, combined-cycle generation stations for data centers. Blackstone funds invested over $25 billion to support the buildout of Pennsylvania’s digital and energy infrastructure.

Other investments come through Blackstone’s Infrastructure Strategies fund, which was launched in 2025 and has raised $4 billion for data centers, energy transition and transportation.