OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has announced a 17-gigawatt data center expansion in west-central Texas, partnering with Oracle, Nvidia, and SoftBank.

The project, revealed at a site in Abilene, is intended to support rising demand for AI computing and will require enough electricity to power over 13 million US homes.

OpenAI estimates the buildout will cost about US$850 billion, accounting for nearly half of HSBC’s projected US$2 trillion global AI infrastructure investment.

Altman said the expansion is driven by increased usage of ChatGPT and the need for large-scale supercomputing facilities.

He also identified electricity as the main constraint for AI development and has invested in nuclear and fusion firms to address energy needs.

Altman said cycles of heavy investment and correction are typical in major technology shifts.

Some industry observers have raised concerns about the scale of investment and the financial relationships between OpenAI and its technology partners.

🔗 Source: CNBC

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