Nvidia says $100b OpenAI investment is still pending

Nvidia’s chief financial officer said the company has not finalized its agreement to invest up to US$100 billion in OpenAI.

Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, revealed a letter of intent in September to deploy at least 10 gigawatts of its systems for OpenAI, but a definitive deal is still pending.

Colette Kress, Nvidia CFO, said at the UBS Global Technology and AI Conference that discussions with OpenAI are ongoing.

OpenAI, which launched ChatGPT in 2022, is a key customer for Nvidia’s chips.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang previously said the company has US$500 billion in chip bookings through 2026, but Kress noted this figure does not include any potential orders from the OpenAI or Anthropic agreements.

Kress said deals with both OpenAI and Anthropic could further increase Nvidia’s future chip bookings.

🔗 Source: Reuters

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

OpenAI’s 10GW plan, Microsoft ties, and multi‑cloud paths

OpenAI targets 10 gigawatts (GW) of Nvidia‑powered capacity 1 2 3. Grid shortages and hardware supply limit growth, while workloads run on Microsoft Azure (Microsoft’s cloud platform) backed by Microsoft’s $13+ billion investment 1 2 3.
A recent restructuring sets up OpenAI as a public benefit corporation (a for‑profit company that also commits to a public mission) 4 3. Microsoft keeps technology access 4 3.
OpenAI disclosed a $300 billion, five‑year cloud agreement with Oracle (an enterprise software and cloud provider) starting in 2027, which provides 4.5 GW of capacity 4. This opens a path to scale outside Microsoft’s infrastructure 4.
The Oracle pact ranks among the largest tech contracts ever 4. OpenAI is spreading bets across cloud and data center suppliers to support scaling 4.

Grid shortages open paths for distributed AI infrastructure developers

U.S. data center (server facility) power demand could reach 106 GW by 2035, up from 40 GW today 5. That gap strains new builds.
PJM Interconnection (PJM) and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) face heavy buildouts 2. PJM’s data center capacity could hit 31 GW by 2030, while new supply barely keeps pace 2.
Developers and financiers, meaning data center builders and investors, can target emerging markets 2. Pennsylvania and Louisiana still have room, while Virginia faces community pushback on new large sites 2.
Companies selling off‑grid or “behind the meter” power can fill gaps 1. Renewable projects make up over 90% of grid connection queues, and utilities will reject connections when power is unavailable 1.