Trump Set to Unveil US$500 Billion AI Infrastructure Investment, Sources Reveal
President Donald Trump is poised to announce a groundbreaking private sector investment of up to $500 billion to support artificial intelligence infrastructure, as disclosed by two sources to Reuters. OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle are teaming up for a Texas-based joint venture named Stargate, with an initial commitment of US$100 billion and a potential total investment of US$500 billion over the next four years, the sources confirmed.
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, OpenAI's Sam Altman, and Oracle's Larry Ellison are expected to be present at the White House for the event, according to CBS. Oracle and SoftBank have not yet responded to requests for comments.
During his 2016 campaign, Trump pledged to advance a $1 trillion infrastructure bill through Congress, a promise that was not fulfilled. Throughout his first term as president from 2017 to 2021, he frequently discussed the topic but did not follow through with a substantial investment, leading to "Infrastructure Week" becoming a running joke. Following the reports, Oracle shares surged by 6%, with increases also seen in Nvidia, Arm Holdings, and Dell shares.
The specifics of whether this planned announcement is an update to a previously reported venture remain unclear. In March 2024, The Information, a technology news website, disclosed that OpenAI and Microsoft were collaborating on a $100 billion data center project, featuring an artificial intelligence supercomputer named "Stargate," anticipated to launch in 2028.
The surge in AI investment has been notable since the introduction of ChatGPT by OpenAI in 2022, prompting companies across various industries to incorporate artificial intelligence into their offerings. The demand for specialised data centres has increased significantly due to the substantial computing power required by AI, allowing tech firms to connect thousands of chips in clusters.
As the United States witnesses a rise in power consumption from AI data centres and the electrification of structures and transportation, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation cautioned in December that approximately half of the nation faces an elevated risk of power supply shortages in the next decade.
President Trump to announce up to US$500 billion private sector investment in AI infrastructure.
OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle to collaborate on Texas-based joint venture named Stargate.
Previous promises of large infrastructure investments by Trump did not materialise.
Source: REUTERS