Nvidia is reportedly in talks to invest as much as $3 billion in SoftBank-backed SB Energy. The proposed investment is part of discussions between Nvidia, OpenAI and SB Energy over roughly $100 billion in credit support for the project, The Information reported.
Nvidia could invest around $1.5 billion when the Ohio project agreement is signed and another $1.5 billion through SB Energy’s planned initial public offering. SB Energy is reportedly targeting an IPO as soon as September and could seek to raise at least $5 billion.
Nvidia could help finance massive OpenAI data center
The potential $3 billion equity investment is only one part of a much larger financing structure surrounding the proposed Ohio development.
Nvidia previously discussed guaranteeing as much as $250 billion of financing for the project. However, the Wall Street Journal reported that those plans have since been scaled back, with Nvidia now expected to initially guarantee less than $120 billion.
The revised approach could see Nvidia provide financial support for the first 5 GW of a planned 10 GW data center campus before deciding whether to back later phases. The full development was previously estimated to require at least $500 billion in investment.
SB Energy expands role in OpenAI infrastructure
SB Energy is already becoming an important infrastructure partner for OpenAI.
OpenAI and SoftBank each agreed earlier this year to invest $500 million in the company. SB Energy was also selected to build and operate a 1.2 GW data center in Texas connected to OpenAI’s Stargate infrastructure initiative.
Announcement from SB Energy
The company develops both large-scale energy projects and data centers, putting it in a strong position as AI companies need to secure electricity alongside computing capacity.
Nvidia moves beyond selling AI chips
The discussions also show how Nvidia’s role in the AI boom is expanding beyond supplying GPUs.
Nvidia recently partnered with Apollo, BlackRock, Blackstone, Brookfield, Goldman Sachs and KKR on financing platforms designed to mobilize more than $500 billion for AI infrastructure.
By financially supporting the data centers that ultimately purchase large volumes of Nvidia hardware, the chipmaker could help accelerate AI infrastructure development while also strengthening demand for its own products.
However, arrangements like these also increase Nvidia’s exposure to the financial performance of AI data centers and their customers.
If completed, the SB Energy investment would position Nvidia not only as the dominant supplier of AI chips, but also as an important financier of the infrastructure needed to run them.
