Nvidia is in talks to provide approximately $250 billion in financing guarantees for OpenAI. This financial backstop would allow OpenAI to raise debt on the strength of Nvidia's credit, bypassing the need for the investment-grade credit rating typically required for such large-scale borrowing.
The funding is intended for a vast new data center campus in Pike County, southern Ohio, which is being developed by SoftBank’s energy subsidiary. The project is expected to provide 10 gigawatts of computing capacity and would be among the largest of the artificial intelligence boom.
For OpenAI, the arrangement represents the first step toward controlling its own infrastructure instead of renting it. Neither company has confirmed the deal.
These developments come amid growing political backlash as various US states propose bans on new data centers. Such measures raise significant challenges for Nvidia and the broader AI industry.