On August 17, a subsidiary of Japan's SoftBank Group announced the signing of a lease agreement with OpenAI for a data center project in Ohio, with U.S. chipmaker NVIDIA providing partial support for the initiative.

SB Energy, the SoftBank subsidiary, confirmed it has entered into a 20-year lease with OpenAI for a data center facility in Pike County, Ohio. While the specific financial terms were not disclosed, the project is expected to reach a capacity of 8 gigawatts at full scale, potentially making it the largest single artificial intelligence data center in the world.

OpenAI has committed $40 million to establish a community grant fund aimed at supporting local workforce training, public utilities, healthcare services, and small business development in the region. According to information released by OpenAI, the project is projected to generate 35,000 temporary construction positions and 2,500 permanent operational roles over the six-year construction period.

As reported by CNBC, a regulatory filing disclosed on August 17 reveals that NVIDIA will provide credit support of up to $105 billion for the data center, a figure significantly lower than the $25 billion previously reported by media outlets. Under the terms of the agreement, NVIDIA would assume payment obligations if OpenAI defaults on the lease due to insolvency or fails to make timely payments.

Additionally, NVIDIA will invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy and provide credit support for the initial 4.25 gigawatts of construction, while holding an option to expand capacity for the remaining 3.75 gigawatts at a later stage.