Brookfield's new AI unit Radiant valued at $1.3 billion after merger with UK startup, sources say

Core Viewpoint - Brookfield Asset Management's new AI infrastructure company, Radiant, has been valued at $1.3 billion following its merger with UK-based Ori Industries, highlighting the growing demand for AI infrastructure amid a shortage of high-performance computing capacity [1][4]. Company Summary - Radiant was formed to provide on-demand access to AI chips and has merged with Ori Industries, a cloud computing firm based in London [1]. - All existing investors of Ori have rolled their stakes into Radiant, with Brookfield injecting additional capital into the new entity [2]. - Mahdi Yahya, founder of Ori, will serve as president of Radiant, emphasizing the partnership with Brookfield to address the supply-demand imbalance in AI infrastructure [5]. Financial Overview - The valuation of Radiant was established earlier in February 2026, although the exact contribution of Ori to this valuation remains unclear [2]. - Ori had total assets of £42.5 million ($57.2 million) and total debt of £11.3 million as of the end of 2024 [4]. Industry Context - The merger comes at a time when there is a race among investors to build the necessary infrastructure for advanced AI, driven by a shortage of computing capacity [4]. - Brookfield's AI infrastructure fund aims to raise $10 billion, with plans to scale up to $100 billion through co-investment and financing [5]. - The UK government is significantly increasing data-center construction, planning to expand national computing capacity by 20-fold by 2030, classifying data centers as critical infrastructure [5].