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Nvidia-backed consortium buys AI data centre firm from Macquarie $69.9b

Nvidia-backed consortium buys AI data centre firm from Macquarie $69.9b

A consortium led by asset manager BlackRock, including chip giant Nvidia and Microsoft is set to acquire data centre specialist Aligned Data Centres from Australian financial services group Macquarie for approximately US$40 billion ($69.9b). The deal marks another sign of the tech sector’s insatiable appetite for AI infrastructure, including chips, servers, and data centres that provide the computing storage and processing power required by artificial intelligence. And it comes on the heels of Macquarie’s A$23b deal to seel Australian and Asia Pacific data centre operator AirTrunk to Blackstone for A$23.5b and the rise and rise in valuation of Canberra Data Centres, half-owned by NZX-listed Infratil. On October 7, Infratil said the latest 2025 independent valuation of CDC showed an increase of A$77 million since June 30 to A$13.6b, making its 49.72% stake worth a new high of A$6.8b. Founded in 2013, Aligned currently operates more than 50 data centres across the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, and Colombia, with a projected capacity exceeding 5 gigawatts. Macquarie initially acquired a stake in the Texas-based company in 2018 through its subsidiary Macquarie Asset Management and subsequently increased its investment in 2020. The acquiring consortium consists of BlackRock, Emirati sovereign tech fund MGX, and the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), a joint venture established by BlackRock in 2024 that includes BlackRock, MGX, Nvidia, and Microsoft. AIP plans to raise US$30b in direct investments and leverage debt to achieve a total investment capacity of US$100b. The partners have not disclosed how equity will be distributed among Aligned’s new shareholders following the transaction’s completion, expected in the first half of 2026. “We are entering a new era in which AI will fundamentally reengineer our economies and enable accelerated growth,” said Ahmed Yahia Al Idrissi, CEO of MGX and Vice Chairman of AIP, in a press release. BlackRock CEO and AIP Chairman Larry Fink said the acquisition enabled its clients to participate in the growth of AI. -Agence France-Presse with Herald staff

'Demoralising': Renters have lower life satisfaction than homeowners – study

'Demoralising': Renters have lower life satisfaction than homeowners – study

Renters have lower life satisfaction than homeowners, a new study has found. And with a 142% increase in rents over the past 16 years, that well-being gap has widened. A 40-year-old central Auckland homeowner told the Herald that owning was good “in some ways”, giving her freedom to make alterations and affording her more disposable income than her friends who rent. “I can do things to my house, and I don’t have to worry about if I’m going to be able to stay living there or be moved. So, I can do things like paint or put up fences or make my house nice,” said the homeowner, who wished to remain anonymous. “And it’s good to know that I bought my house when I was in my early twenties, when it wasn’t too expensive. Some of my friends who rent [in the area] where I live have less money to do things. “But then, I have maintenance on my house that they don’t have to pay. And there’s a lot going out to my mortgage. That is less than rent in the area, but then I have insurance.” A renter in North Auckland told the Herald he thought renting affected his wellbeing “to an extent”. “I can do things to my house, and I don’t have to worry about if I’m going to be able to stay living there or be moved," says one homeowner. “When you look at what you get paid and then the amount that comes out for rent, it’s quite demoralising, especially while trying to negotiate other bills and financial things. It’s tricky when you do see a large chunk coming out [on payday].” The 28-year-old, who lives with his partner and wished to remain anonymous, said they had thought about buying together and whether it would make them better off. “While there’s always the uncertainty of renting, that you could get kicked out or have to maintain someone else’s property, when you talk to people who do own homes, you hear some of the costs that are involved and you think, ‘I’m actually glad to be renting’.” The study was done through Motu Research and Victoria University of Wellington Te Herenga Waka. The study also found that people who own their homes outright have stronger financial well-being than renters or mortgage-holders. “Our findings show rising property prices can make some people feel better off while leaving others struggling,” said Motu senior fellow and Victoria University professor Arthur Grimes. It used data from more than 80,000 households collected by Statistics NZ between 2006 and 2024. Between 2005 and 2021, a 142% “surge” in rents deepened inequalities, researchers said. “If we want to support well-being for everyone, we need to look closely at how monetary and other policies affect house prices and rents,” Grimes said. “Good policy can ensure prosperity supports everyone, no matter their housing situation.” Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers business, breaking news and local stories from Tāmaki Makaurau. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.

Step aside, popemobile, the Pope gets real horsepower

Step aside, popemobile, the Pope gets real horsepower

Who needs a popemobile when you have a new four-legged ride that whinnies? Pope Leo XIV was given a 12-year-old white purebred Arabian horse, Proton, today, a present from a Polish breeder. The gift, whose appearance elicited a wide smile of joy from the new United States Pope before his general audience, was given by Andrzej Michalski, founder of the Michalski Stud Farm in northwestern Poland. “The Pope was very happy; we led the horse together. He was delighted, and we were overjoyed,” Michalski told Vatican News. The gift was inspired by a photograph of the Pope, formerly known as Robert Prevost, on horseback during his missionary years in Peru, it said. Michalski intends for the horse to be auctioned, with proceeds going towards aiding the poor. Proton, who boasts a light grey-white coat with dark spots, is the issue of two horses with impressive pedigrees: Kahil, born in the US from a Qatari breeding programme, and Pradera, whose father was raised by Princess Alia Al Hussein of Jordan. Popes regularly receive gifts from the faithful or visiting dignitaries, which are often sold at auction for charitable purposes. During his 12-year pontificate, Pope Francis notably received two donkeys and a Lamborghini painted in the colours of the Vatican. - Agence France-Presse

Apple boosts top devices with faster M5 chip ahead of holiday rush

Apple boosts top devices with faster M5 chip ahead of holiday rush

Apple Inc has updated its top-of-the-line iPad Pro, Vision Pro headset and 14-inch MacBook Pro, rounding out a series of product refreshes before the crucial holiday-shopping season. The new products, announced Wednesday, all use Apple’s latest in-house chip, called the M5. With the exception of a new headband for the Vision Pro, the devices don’t offer major exterior design changes. They are available to preorder now and will arrive in stores on October 22. Prices remain unchanged from previous models. The more powerful chip should help Apple’s tablet surpass many high-end laptops in performance. Combined with long-overdue multitasking improvements that were introduced with iPadOS 26 last month, iPad owners will finally be able to put that horsepower to greater use. Apple is betting that the new models will bolster demand after disappointing iPad sales in the June quarter. Some shoppers may have been waiting for the updated version before making purchases. Like its direct predecessor, the M5 iPad Pro has an incredibly thin design and includes a multilayered “tandem” OLED display – an approach that offers more brightness and efficiency. Apple is maintaining the standard 11-inch and 13-inch sizes of recent models, and they have the same US$999 and US$1299 starting prices as before. With iPadOS 26, Apple overhauled its approach to multitasking with a new system that more closely resembles the way users interact with software on a Mac. Many different apps can now be used on the iPad’s screen at once, with more intuitive controls for resizing and rearranging windows. Other improvements include a Mac-like menu bar at the top of the screen when working inside apps and the ability to place folders directly in the home screen dock. All recent iPad models can take advantage of the revamped windowing interface, but the iPad Pro is able to juggle the most apps simultaneously. Vision Pro Apple is equipping the second-generation Vision Pro with the brand new M5 chip. It offers a big jump in overall processing power compared with the ageing M2 from the original headset. The company’s latest silicon should let the Vision Pro handle advanced augmented reality experiences, as well as processing-heavy artificial intelligence features. The more ergonomic head strap, meanwhile, is designed to reduce fatigue and discomfort that can result from wearing the Vision Pro for an extended period of time. Since its release in early 2024, the Vision Pro has been viewed as too heavy and expensive to become a hit product. But it’s still an impressive technology showcase. The device’s displays are top-notch and offer a better movie-watching experience than other headsets. Even so, Apple has been slow to roll out immersive 3D videos that play to the Vision Pro’s strengths. The Vision Pro now has better processing power and an ergonomic head strap, targeting business use. With many consumers unwilling to splurge on a US$3499 product, Apple has increasingly been touting the Vision Pro as a good fit for businesses or organisations. Even as it introduces a new Vision Pro, Apple has already shifted its priorities to smart glasses, a category that consumers have shown far greater interest in. The company recently shelved a planned overhaul of the Vision Pro that would have brought a lighter design and more affordable price, Bloomberg has reported. Instead, it’s racing to catch up with Meta Platforms in the glasses market. The company’s just-released Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses are an impressive demonstration of the progress it’s made in the category.

White House warns 10,000 layoffs as shutdown grinds into third week

White House warns 10,000 layoffs as shutdown grinds into third week

The White House says it will likely lay off at least 10,000 federal workers during the US government shutdown as Republican President Donald Trump steps up pressure on Democrats. The shutdown has ground into its third week, with Congress deadlocked in a clash over spending and Trump following through on his threats to take a hatchet to the workforce in response. “I think we’ll probably end up being north of 10,000,” White House Office of Management and Budget chief Russ Vought said. “We want to be very aggressive where we can be in shuttering the bureaucracy.” Court documents filed by the Department of Justice showed that more than 4000 employees were fired on Friday, with the US Treasury and health, education and housing departments hardest hit. Vought said that was a “snapshot” and that there would be more. Trump has warned that continued refusal by Democrats to support a House-passed resolution to fund the Government through late November would result in mass layoffs targeting workers deemed to be aligned with the opposition party. The US President has vowed to find a way to pay troops due to go without their paycheques for the first time, although the uncertainty is already leading to long lines of men and women in uniform at food banks. - Agence France-Presse