Nvidia to invest up to $170.4b in OpenAI data centres

Nvidia will invest up to $170.4 billion in OpenAI to build AI infrastructure. The partnership will enable OpenAI to deploy AI data centres using Nvidia's GPUs. Photo / Getty Images

Nvidia said Monday it will invest up to US$100 billion ($170.4b) in OpenAI, building infrastructure for next-generation artificial intelligence.

The strategic partnership aimed at deploying massive data centre capacity unites generative AI star OpenAI with the leading maker of chips powering the technology.

“Compute infrastructure will be the basis for the economy of the future,” OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said in a joint release.

“We will utilise what we’re building with NVIDIA to both create new AI breakthroughs and empower people and businesses with them at scale.”

The partnership will enable San Francisco-based OpenAI to build and deploy AI data centres with Nvidia systems, representing millions of sophisticated graphics processing units (GPUs), according to the companies.

The first Nvidia systems are expected to be operating in the second half of next year.

OpenAI and Nvidia added that they will work together to optimise how the companies’ hardware and software complement each other.

No financial details were provided beyond the possible magnitude of Nvidia’s investment in OpenAI.

Tech industry rivals Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft and Elon Musk’s xAI have been pouring billions of dollars into artificial intelligence since the blockbuster launch of the first version of ChatGPT in late 2022.

Nvidia has become a coveted source of high-performance GPUs tailored for generative AI.

Chinese startup DeepSeek shook up the AI sector early this year with a model that delivers high performance using less costly chips.

Silicon Valley-based Nvidia last week announced it would invest US$5b in struggling chip rival Intel.

The investment represents a significant commitment to Intel’s turnaround efforts. Nvidia joined Japanese investment giant SoftBank and the US Government in backing the once-dominant chipmaker, which has fallen behind in recent years after missing key technology shifts.

Nvidia’s GPUs, originally designed for gaming systems, have become the essential building blocks of artificial intelligence applications, with tech giants scrambling to secure them for their data centres and AI projects.

OpenAI released a keenly awaited new generation of its hallmark ChatGPT last month, touting significant advancements in artificial intelligence capabilities as a global race over the technology accelerates.

ChatGPT-5 was made available free to the more than 700 million who use the AI tool weekly, according to OpenAI.

-Agence France-Presse