OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, has ambitious plans to leverage the funds acquired from a chip venture to establish a series of semiconductor manufacturing facilities, commonly referred to as fabs, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Bloomberg reported on January 19th that Altman is engaged in discussions with various significant potential investors to secure the necessary funding for this expansive initiative, which would involve collaborating with leading chip producers on a global scale.
Among the potential investors, Abu Dhabi-based G42 and Japan’s SoftBank Group are in early talks with OpenAI, although a comprehensive list of partners and funders has not yet been finalized.
Since October 2023, OpenAI has been in discussions with G42 with the goal of raising an impressive $8 billion to $10 billion for the project.
While the current status of these discussions remains uncertain, the report mentions that Intel, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), and Samsung Electronics are among the potential collaborators OpenAI is considering.
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Interestingly, OpenAI is not the only tech giant looking to invest in semiconductor chips.
Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, announced on January 18th that the company intends to make substantial investments in specialized computer chips to develop and deliver new generative artificial intelligence (AI) models and products.
Meta plans to bolster its technology infrastructure, aiming to acquire approximately 350,000 H100 graphics processing units from chip designer Nvidia by the end of 2024.
Sam Altman’s renewed focus on securing funding for global semiconductor chip manufacturing comes after his unexpected and brief ouster from OpenAI in November 2023.
Upon his return, he resumed efforts to realize this ambitious project, even discussing the plan with Microsoft, which has reportedly shown interest.
Beyond his involvement in semiconductor chips, Altman holds a belief that the future of AI could hinge on a bold yet uncertain form of energy that does not currently exist—a vision that adds further intrigue to OpenAI’s future endeavors.
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