Nvidia announces up to $100B investment in OpenAI

2025-09-22 · Publisher : Nvidia · Domain : Artificial Intelligence

Nvidia and OpenAI sign a letter of intent: at least 10 GW of Nvidia systems for OpenAI and up to $100 billion invested by Nvidia as deployments proceed. The non-binding deal is replaced in early 2026 by a smaller equity investment.

What changes

  • At least 10 GW of Nvidia systems for OpenAI's future data centers.
  • Nvidia intends to invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI progressively, as each gigawatt is deployed.
  • First gigawatt expected in the second half of 2026 on the Vera Rubin platform.
  • The structure fuels the debate on circular financing: the supplier funds its customer, who buys its chips.
  • In February 2026, Nvidia drops the original scheme and invests $30 billion in an OpenAI funding round.

On September 22, 2025, Nvidia and OpenAI announce a letter of intent for a strategic partnership: OpenAI is to deploy at least 10 gigawatts of Nvidia systems, several million GPUs, to train and serve its next models. In return, Nvidia intends to invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI. ### What happened - **Timeline**: the investment would be made progressively, as each gigawatt is deployed. The first gigawatt is planned for the second half of 2026 on the Vera Rubin platform. - **Collaboration**: the two companies announce the co-optimization of their hardware and software roadmaps, complementing OpenAI's partnerships with Microsoft, Oracle and SoftBank. - **Statements**: for Sam Altman, "Everything starts with compute"; Jensen Huang notes that the two companies "have pushed each other for a decade". ### Key figures | Item | Announced value | |---|---| | Capacity | at least 10 GW | | Nvidia investment | up to $100 billion | | First gigawatt | second half of 2026 | ### Why it matters The announcement shows the scale reached by the compute race: capacity is now counted in gigawatts, the output of several nuclear reactors. It also exposes the sector's circular financing: Nvidia invests in a customer that will use the funds to buy Nvidia chips, which revived concerns about a bubble. ### Caveats It was a non-binding letter of intent. The deal was never finalized in that form: in February 2026, Nvidia invested $30 billion in an OpenAI funding round, a direct equity stake not tied to deployments, while OpenAI diversified its suppliers, notably with AMD. ### Key takeaways The deal marks the peak of the giant announcements of fall 2025; its replacement by a smaller investment is a reminder of the gap between intentions and firm commitments.

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Tags : IA, Calcul, Énergie, Financement, NVIDIA, OpenAI