AI Growth Pushes Global Firms Toward Equity Funding
Demand for computing power is outpacing supply, and Blackstone's Jon Gray says more equity capital will be needed.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
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Blackstone president Jon Gray said more global equity fundraising will be needed to keep pace with AI industry growth, speaking at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's Global Financial Leaders' Investment Summit. The remarks are a projection and an opinion, not an announced financing plan.
Why it matters
Demand for computing power from the AI industry is running well ahead of supply, and that gap is pushing companies toward equity markets to fund data centres and energy buildout. Meta, Google, and Oracle are expected to raise equity capital, and SpaceX and Anthropic are going public, a sign that AI infrastructure costs are reshaping capital markets.
The source reports no benchmark, spec, or dollar figure for the AI infrastructure spending described. The only measurable context is qualitative: data centre and energy requirements are described as enormous, and computing demand is described as running well ahead of supply.
The players
Blackstone
Blackstone is one of the world's largest alternative asset managers, with major investments in real estate and digital infrastructure, including data centres.
Jon Gray
Jon Gray is the president of Blackstone, one of the largest private investment firms globally.
Hong Kong Monetary Authority
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is the city's central monetary and banking regulator, which hosted the Global Financial Leaders' Investment Summit.
The details
AI models run on large clusters of specialised chips housed in data centres, which consume substantial electricity and require new power generation and grid connections to operate. Building that capacity is capital-intensive, so companies are turning to equity offerings, which sell ownership stakes to investors, to finance it. According to the source, tech stocks globally have been under pressure in recent weeks as growing concerns about AI spending have triggered new selloffs, which makes raising equity more complicated.
Timeline
November 3, 2026: Jon Gray spoke at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's Global Financial Leaders' Investment Summit.
Recent weeks: Tech stocks globally came under pressure amid AI spending concerns.
The Tech Race
Meta, Google, and Oracle are competing to build the data centre capacity that AI models require, and the source reports they are expected to raise equity to fund it. The move places these firms in a capital race alongside SpaceX and Anthropic, both going public, as the sector's infrastructure needs outpace available supply.
The source does not describe any change to consumer products, pricing, or availability. Its direct effect is on investors and the companies seeking capital, as equity offerings may broaden who holds stakes in major AI infrastructure firms.
The takeaway
Watch for the actual equity offerings from Meta, Google, and Oracle, which will show how large the capital need is and whether investors absorb it. Track whether SpaceX and Anthropic's public listings price in the same AI infrastructure demand.
Further reading
For broader context on the chips and models driving this demand, see the Artificial Intelligence section.
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