WASHINGTON — On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced a new joint venture, involving OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank, poised to invest up to $500 billion in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
This new entity, Stargate, will focus on developing data centers and power generation facilities in Texas to support AI advancements. The initial investment is projected at $100 billion, with potential for a fivefold increase.
Trump described the initiative as “big money and high quality people,” highlighting it as a significant vote of confidence in American potential under his administration.
Joining Trump at the White House were Masayoshi Son (SoftBank), Sam Altman (OpenAI), and Larry Ellison (Oracle). All three executives acknowledged Trump’s role in facilitating the project, despite construction already underway and the project’s origins dating back to 2024.
Altman emphasized the project’s significance, calling it “the most important project of this era.”
Ellison, noting that ten data centers are currently under construction, suggested the project’s relevance to digital health records and potential advancements in disease treatment, such as cancer vaccines.
Son echoed Trump’s “golden age” rhetoric, connecting the project to the anticipated economic prosperity under the Trump administration.
Son, a Japanese billionaire, previously pledged $100 billion in U.S. investments over four years. This follows a prior $50 billion commitment made before Trump’s first term, which included a substantial investment in WeWork.
While Trump framed the announcement as economic progress under his leadership, the need for substantial expansion in data centers and power generation for AI development was already anticipated. This expansion presents both opportunities for increased productivity through automation and potential job displacement if not carefully managed.
Stargate’s initial planning phases started under the Biden administration. The Information first reported on the project in March 2024. OpenAI, previously reliant on Microsoft’s data centers, has increasingly sought to build its own infrastructure.
In a letter to the Commerce Department last fall, OpenAI highlighted the lengthy and complex permitting process for such large-scale projects, particularly for energy infrastructure.
Other project partners include Microsoft, MGX, Arm, and NVIDIA, according to separate statements from Oracle and OpenAI.
The push for data center expansion predates Trump’s presidency. Last October, estimates projected $1 trillion in U.S. data center investment over five years, with a similar amount internationally.
These investment projections suggest that Stargate will attract a significant portion of this capital, given OpenAI’s leading position in the sector following the 2022 launch of ChatGPT, a popular chatbot.
The White House has prioritized streamlining the approval process for new power generation, reflecting the competitive race between the U.S. and China in AI development.
The regulatory landscape for AI remains uncertain. Trump recently reversed a 2023 executive order aimed at creating safety standards and watermarking for AI-generated content, intending to reduce potential risks to national security and economic stability.
CBS News initially reported on Trump’s planned announcement of the AI investment.
Elon Musk, a former OpenAI investor and significant Trump supporter, has voiced criticism of OpenAI’s transition to a for-profit model and has launched his own AI company, xAI. Musk also heads Trump’s newly established “Department of Government Efficiency,” focused on reducing government spending.
Trump previously announced a $20 billion investment by DAMAC Properties (UAE) in AI-related data centers.
—AP reporter Matt O’Brien contributed to this report from Providence, Rhode Island.
