SoftBank, Grab and PETROS Commit $1.85 Billion to Malaysian AI Data Centers

SoftBank, Grab and Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (PETROS) have committed $1.85 billion in initial seed capital to build AI data center infrastructure in Malaysia, according to a joint release Grab filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The commitment, signed as joint development agreements on Nov. 9, splits SoftBank's $1 billion, Grab's $750 million and PETROS's $100 million across two projects: one in Sarawak and one in Peninsular Malaysia.

The agreement moves a framework the three companies signed in Kuching on Oct. 8 into a joint development phase. The partners set a long-term target of five gigawatts or more of AI compute capacity and say they will seek additional investors and hyperscaler customers.

How is the money split?

The $1.85 billion divides unevenly between two vehicles, and the ownership structure differs sharply between them:

• Sarawak project: SoftBank $800 million, Grab $100 million, PETROS $100 million — a total of $1 billion. A separate release put the Sarawak seed capital at about RM4.07 billion.
• Peninsular Malaysia project: SoftBank $200 million and Grab $650 million, totaling $850 million.

SoftBank will lead and majority-own the Sarawak project. Grab holds an option to raise its stake there, which would dilute SoftBank, although SoftBank would remain the majority shareholder. In Peninsular Malaysia, Grab is the founding shareholder and will lead development. The Peninsular project is expected to draw further funding at project level from third-party equity and non-recourse project finance.

Grab chief executive Anthony Tan is expected to oversee both projects, with dedicated management teams running them day to day. In plain terms, SoftBank controls the Sarawak build and Grab controls the Peninsular one, under a single supervising executive.

What is actually binding?

The joint development agreements carry binding funding obligations, but the money arrives in stages. Capital will be deployed only as the projects reach development and customer-contract milestones, and it remains subject to closing conditions. The terms of the joint venture entities still depend on definitive agreements.

The releases name no GPU supplier, no specific site, no power source and no tenant. That gap matters: the $1.85 billion is a commitment to develop projects, not a confirmed order book of chips, land or customers. The headline number should be read as a ceiling on initial intent rather than cash already spent.

Why Malaysia, and why now?

The agreements cover the same two regions that Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim named on Oct. 24, when he said SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son had chosen Kuching and Peninsular Malaysia for about $50 billion of AI, data center and technology investment. SoftBank has not confirmed that figure, so the larger number remains a government claim rather than a company commitment.

The deal follows Google's pledge of $15 billion for Malaysian data centers in 2027-28, and it comes days after SoftBank reported a $7 billion quarterly loss. The timing shows SoftBank pressing ahead with infrastructure bets even as its broader portfolio takes losses, and Malaysia competing for hyperscaler capital against its regional neighbors.

What happens next?

The partners will look for additional investors and hyperscaler customers to scale toward the five-gigawatt target. Because funding releases depend on development and customer-contract milestones, the next concrete signal to watch is a signed tenant or a named site in either Sarawak or Peninsular Malaysia. Until then, the commercial picture stays a roadmap backed by staged capital.