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Private-capital investments in data centers and the businesses that support them outperformed private equity overall for a third consecutive quarter in Q1 2026, as continued investment in AI infrastructure drove a divergence between the two.

The MSCI Private Capital Data Center Ecosystem Holdings Index returned 5.6% in the first quarter, against a 0.7% decline for the MSCI Global Private Equity Holdings Index and a similar drop for global public equities. Over longer horizons the gap has held too: the Ecosystem Holdings Index returned 22.7% and 18.7% annualized over the past one and three years, respectively, ahead of broader private equity holdings across both periods.

The index combines two sub-indexes: one tracking data-center operators (colocation facilities, operating companies and development land) and one tracking the value chain of businesses that enable data-center operations. Operators now account for roughly two-thirds of the index's holdings value, up from just over 40% in late 2022, as capital has moved toward physical infrastructure.

Together, the sub-indexes give investors a consistent view of an opportunity set that has historically been split across real estate, infrastructure, buyout and venture mandates.

For institutional investors tracking where private capital is flowing, the divergence is a useful reference point when weighing sector-level exposure within a broader private equity or total portfolio allocation.