Mubadala-backed Fortress invests $100m in UK's Imagination to boost AI portfolio

Deal will give Fortress access to chip company's intellectual properties present in more than 13 billion devices globally

The headquarters of Imagination Technologies on London's outskirts. The company's intellectual properties serve key industries including automotive, data centres, consumer devices and the Internet of Things. ReutersShow less

Fortress Investment Group, the US-based fund backed by Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Capital, has invested $100 million in British semiconductor company Imagination Technologies Group, expanding its footprint in the sector being fuelled by artificial intelligence.

The deal will grant Fortress access to Imagination's intellectual properties that are present in more than 13 billion devices globally, including in Apple products, Imagination said on Wednesday.

IPs held by Kings Langley-based Imagination – including for AI, graphics processing units, central processing units and ray tracing – serve key industries including automotive, data centres, consumer devices and the Internet of Things.

Fortress, which is 68 per cent owned by Mubadala Capital through a consortium, is structuring the deal as a loan, which over time will be converted to equity, the statement said.

The move is aimed at maximising the value of Fortress' portfolio in intellectual properties and technology, said Eran Zur, head of IP at New York-based Fortress.

“Imagination is exceptionally well-positioned to capture a greater share of the growth in technology, including in AI, given the burgeoning demand for ever-more efficient compute solutions across the global economy," he said.

Mubadala Capital is the asset management subsidiary of Abu Dhabi’s strategic investment arm, Mubadala Investment Company.

It has no role in moves made by Fortress, which remains an independent investment manager under the Fortress brand and has "full autonomy over investment processes and decision making, personnel and operations", according to the terms of the acquisition.

A request for comment from Fortress was sent outside its operating hours.

Companies and investors are racing to grab a share of the growing semiconductor market, which has been boosted by the surge of AI and in particular by its latest iteration, the red-hot generative AI market.

Generative AI, made popular by the emergence of OpenAI's ChatGPT, is expected to power the next technological revolution, influencing governments, societies and economies.

In the Middle East, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have been leading the charge in boosting tech capabilities in preparation for the economy of the future.

The global semiconductor IP market is projected to hit $11.2 billion by 2029, from $7.5 billion in 2024, at a compound annual growth rate of 8.5 per cent, data from research firm Markets and Markets shows.

The overall AI chip industry, on the other hand, is expected to become a trillion-dollar sector by 2030, according to both McKinsey and semiconductor industry tracker TechInsights.

Fortress' investment will be used "to support the continued development and growth" of technologies and IP, the statement said.

"This investment comes with a shared commitment to drive Imagination’s innovation ... and to help us accelerate growth [and] drive significant advancements," said Ray Bingham, executive chair of Imagination Technologies.

Imagination is owned by Canyon Bridge, a private equity firm registered in the Cayman Islands, which in turn is owned by investment firm China Reform.

The company was taken private and delisted from the London Stock Exchange in a £550 million ($709 million) deal in 2017.

Fortress, on the other hand, is a global investment manager with $49 billion of assets under management as of March across credit, real estate, private equity and permanent capital investment strategies.

With the joint ownership under Mubadala Capital, Fortress seeks to boost its strategy in the alternative investment space, with access to the former's global network and extensive portfolio of diversified assets.

Mubadala Capital began operations as a wholly owned asset management unit of Mubadala Investment Company in November 2021 as part of Mubadala's plans to “rigorously pursue” investment opportunities around the globe.

Since it started in 2011, Mubadala Capital has grown significantly in scale over the past decade, with offices around the world. It manages nearly $20 billion in aggregate across its own balance sheet investments and third-party capital vehicles across its private equity, solutions, venture capital and Brazil businesses.