GFiber to Merge with Astound Broadband to Form New ISP

For over a decade, GFiber (formerly Google Fiber) has pushed the boundaries of what consumers can expect from their home internet. From pioneering multi-gigabit speeds to championing an award-winning, customer-first approach, the company has constantly challenged the broadband status quo. Now, GFiber is taking a monumental step to scale its mission nationwide.

On March 11, 2026, GFiber announced a groundbreaking agreement to combine with Stonepeak’s Astound Broadband, forming a new, leading independent fiber provider. Under the new arrangement, infrastructure investment firm Stonepeak will become the majority shareholder of the newly combined venture, while Alphabet will retain a significant minority stake.

This merger represents a major leap toward GFiber’s goal of operational and financial independence, granting the company the external capital and strategic focus needed for its next phase of rapid growth. The combined business will continue to be spearheaded by the existing GFiber executive team and will seamlessly fuse GFiber’s high-growth metropolitan networks with Astound’s established infrastructure and capabilities.

“GFiber has always been about pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for internet speed and service,” said GFiber CEO Dinni Jain. “This partnership with Astound and Stonepeak is the next step in our decade-long mission to redefine what customers can expect from their internet provider. It’s a strategic opportunity to scale our customer-focused approach to connect more households to a truly different type of internet service.”

Local Momentum: Connecting South Carolina

This strategic combination comes exactly as GFiber actively aggressively expands its deployment into fresh markets—a momentum clearly visible in South Carolina. Recently, Tega Cay proudly became the very first municipality in the state to welcome GFiber, setting a new standard for connectivity in the region. Capitalizing on this milestone, GFiber has already expanded its high-speed network into neighboring Fort Mill, SC, bringing lightning-fast, reliable internet to even more households.

These thriving Carolinian communities perfectly illustrate the type of high-growth markets that the newly empowered GFiber will continue to target. The merger is designed precisely to bring this level of ubiquitous, next-generation connectivity to more neighborhoods across the map.

“Building on GFiber’s success as a leading independent US fiber internet provider, this is an exciting next phase of their growth,” noted Ruth Porat, President & Chief Investment Officer for Alphabet and Google. She emphasized that the combination will allow GFiber to provide better internet access to more communities across the country while maintaining the phenomenal customer experience they are known for.

Andrew Thomas, Senior Managing Director at Stonepeak, echoed this enthusiasm, highlighting that the complementary networks of GFiber and Astound will “better serve millions of customers and the demand for a next generation network.”

Subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to finalize in the fourth quarter of this year. For residents in recently connected towns like Tega Cay and Fort Mill and millions of prospective customers nationwide, the future of high-speed, reliable, and customer-centric internet is brighter than ever.

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