Nvidia lines up $20B stake as OpenAI chases $100B+ mega-round

Nvidia circles $20B investment in OpenAI

Nvidia, the world’s most valuable chip designer, is reportedly closing in on a massive investment of around $20 billion in OpenAI, underscoring the escalating race to dominate the next era of artificial intelligence. The potential deal would form a cornerstone of a new funding round that could exceed $100 billion, according to people familiar with the talks.

OpenAI hunts record-breaking $100B+ funding round

OpenAI, creator of the widely used generative AI platform ChatGPT, is said to be exploring a capital raise that would value the company among the world’s most richly priced private technology firms. The fresh funding is expected to fuel expansion of its large-scale AI models, build out advanced data centers, and secure long-term access to cutting-edge GPU infrastructure.

The size of the contemplated round highlights investor belief that foundation models and AI infrastructure will underpin a new wave of enterprise software, consumer applications and robotics. It also reflects the enormous capital intensity required to train and deploy frontier AI systems at global scale.

Strategic alignment between chipmaker and AI lab

For Nvidia, a major stake in OpenAI would deepen its role at the center of the AI hardware and software ecosystem. The company already dominates the market for accelerator chips that power modern machine learning workloads, and OpenAI is one of the largest buyers of its high-end GPUs.

A sizeable equity position would give Nvidia closer visibility into the needs of a leading AI research lab, helping it shape future chip architectures, AI platforms and developer tools. It would also strengthen its influence as cloud providers, enterprises and governments compete to secure scarce AI computing resources.

Implications for Big Tech and regulators

A $100B+ round anchored by a $20B commitment from Nvidia would intensify scrutiny from competitors and policymakers. Big Tech rivals that are already partnering with or investing in AI startups could face a more concentrated landscape, with a handful of firms controlling critical AI infrastructure and talent.

Regulators in the US and Europe are likely to examine how deep financial and technological ties between a dominant chip supplier and a leading AI model developer might affect competition, pricing and access to compute. Still, investors see the prospective deal as a defining moment for the commercialisation of generative AI, marking a shift from experimental deployments to industrial-scale adoption across sectors.