Sovereign wealth funds are increasingly less likely to act solely as financial investors. Geopolitics means that the capital they manage is becoming a tool of industrial policy, serving to build infrastructure, secure supply chains and gain a foothold in artificial intelligence.
A study by IE University shows that, over the 18-month period analysed up to December 2025, the number of direct investments by these funds fell by 17 per cent to 391, but their total value rose by 91 per cent to $404 billion. By comparison, the previous edition of the report, covering the period from January 2023 to June 2024, recorded 473 investments worth $211 billion. In practice, this means a concentration of capital on a smaller number of significantly larger projects.
“This fragmented landscape has had an impact,” said Javier Capapé, editor of the report and director of sovereign wealth research at IE University. “Sovereign wealth funds are increasingly being used by governments to implement national strategies and develop stronger positions in global value chains.”
Around a third of the value of the investments tracked in the study was linked to AI. State capital was channelled into OpenAI, xAI and Anthropic, amongst others. The Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi’s MGX fund participated in xAI’s $20 billion funding round, whilst the QIA and Singapore’s GIC backed Anthropic’s $13 billion round.
State investors are funding not only model developers, but also the data centres, semiconductors and energy infrastructure required for their operation. The United States attracted $220.4 billion, the highest of any market. Temasek, meanwhile, led the way in terms of the number of transactions, carrying out 71 investments.
This means greater availability of long-term capital, but primarily in sectors aligned with the state’s interests. Not only growth and profitability are becoming important, but also the location of infrastructure, security of supply, access to energy and the project’s alignment with the national technology strategy. Transparency remains an issue: as Capapé pointed out, publicly available data shows only “the tip of the iceberg”.
