EQT in talks with Saudi and UAE sovereign funds on AI data centres

EQT is in talks with Saudi and UAE sovereign funds about investing together in AI and data centers. Jean Eric Salata, global chair of the Stockholm-headquartered private markets firm, said the conversations cover joint opportunities in the region’s two largest economies. No prospective partners, investment amounts, structures or timelines have been disclosed. Salata told The National that EQT is talking to sovereign investors in both countries. “Here [in the UAE] I would say, and we've also been talking to Saudis as well, looking at opportunities there. Those are the two big areas that we're working on right now,” he said of the ongoing AI co-investment discussions. He identified the physical constraints of chips, energy and data centers as the core limits on building AI infrastructure, while noting that long-term capital providers have an opportunity given sustained computing demand. EQT plans to expand its Gulf footprint through EdgeConneX, its data-center platform that operates more than 106 facilities across 25 countries. The firm already works closely with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and has co-invested with it on major deals, including a £9.3 billion bid for UK-listed Intertek Group. EQT launched its Middle East platform and opened an Abu Dhabi office on 23 September 2026, stating that the office would build on relationships developed over more than a decade and support investment in digital and AI infrastructure. For EQT the practical change is an open dialogue with the two largest Gulf sovereign investors on co-investment in AI and data-center assets. The value of any eventual deal depends on whether the talks produce a named partnership, a committed amount or a specific project. The current disclosure does not name the counterparties beyond “sovereign investors” in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, nor does it state the size or structure of any contemplated investment. EdgeConneX gives EQT an operating platform it can offer to partners that want exposure to data-center capacity rather than only to AI model developers. Saudi Arabia has rolled out Project Transcendence, a $100 billion scheme to scale domestic AI and data infrastructure, and the Public Investment Fund has established HUMAIN to build national cloud and computing capacity with multi-gigawatt targets. The UAE continues large-scale data-center and AI campus plans involving both sovereign vehicles and international technology partners. Across Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, announced AI investment plans total roughly $120 billion, more than 5 per cent of their combined gross domestic product. Other global infrastructure investors have also signed memoranda with Gulf sovereign vehicles for digital assets, reflecting competition for long-term capital that can fund physical infrastructure. EQT’s existing relationship with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority provides a track record of co-investment that could be extended into AI infrastructure. The firm’s data-center platform EdgeConneX already operates at scale globally, giving it operating experience that pure financial investors may lack. The absence of named counterparties or amounts means the talks remain at an early stage. Saudi and Emirati sovereign vehicles have multiple channels for AI infrastructure capital, including direct investments, partnerships with hyper-scalers and dedicated vehicles such as HUMAIN and G42-related entities. EQT is positioning itself as one additional long-term capital provider rather than the sole source of funding for any single project. If the next update from EQT or the sovereign funds names a partner, a project or a capital commitment, the talks have a measurable follow-through. If the next statement only restates that discussions continue, the change for the market remains the same as the 3 November report. The figures missing from the current disclosure are the identity of the counterparties, any indicative investment size and any timetable. The conversations are one step in EQT’s effort to place long-term private-markets capital alongside Gulf sovereign investors in AI infrastructure.