A Brief Look at Stargate, the US$500bn Investment in AI Infrastructure

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A lot has happened since Donald Trump assumed office as the 47th President of the United States (U.S.), from resuming operations to the U.S. withdrawal from the WHO. Recently, Trump also announced a massive private sector investment in artificial intelligence () infrastructure.

As per Reuters, on Tuesday, Trump said that 's creator OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle are planning a joint venture called Stargate, investing up to US$500 billion. The investment, which Trump referred to as "the largest AI infrastructure project, by far, in history," will be pivotal in establishing the country’s leadership in AI.

Citing various sources, in this article, we’ll delve into the Stargate Project and find out the key parties involved in this ambitious development.

What is the Stargate Project?

According to the official website of , the Stargate Project describes a new company with the intention of building new AI infrastructure in the U.S. To be precise, the ambitious project is aimed to outpace rival nations in business-critical technology.

The Stargate initiative’s potential benefits extend beyond the U.S.’ leadership in AI: it is projected to build data centers and create over 100,000 jobs in the U.S., as well as generate significant economic impact worldwide.

The project is expected to invest up to US$500 billion over the next four years, with US$100 billion allocated for the initial deployment.

Key Players in the Stargate Project

The Stargate project involves significant involvement from notable private sector entities. Still referring to the official website of OpenAI, Softbank, Oracle, OpenAI, and MGX are the initial equity funders in the initiative.

To be precise, SoftBank and OpenAI are the lead partners; the former oversees financial activities, whereas the latter handles operational responsibility. Furthermore, Arm, , NVIDIA, Oracle, and OpenAI serve as the key initial technology partners.

As for Microsoft, according to Reuters, it has changed some key terms of a deal with OpenAI after the ChatGPT creator announced a joint venture with Oracle and SoftBank Group. In a blog post, Microsoft announced its approval of OpenAI's capacity expansion, primarily for research and model training purposes.

The first of the project’s data centers is currently underway, starting in Texas. Oracle Chairperson Larry Ellison further explained that twenty of these will be built, with half a million square feet each, Reuters reported.

Revocation of Biden's Executive Orders on AI

It’s important to note that the joint venture announcement on 's second day in office follows the rolling back of former President Joe Biden's executive order on AI. According to Reuters, the order was intended to reduce the risks that AI poses to consumers, workers, and national security.

Since AI requires enormous computing power, the existence of specialized data centers enabling tech companies to link thousands of chips together in clusters is crucial. Regarding this, Trump was committed to making it happen.

"They have to produce a lot of electricity, and we'll make it possible for them to get that production done very easily at their own plants if they want," Trump said.

OPENAI | REUTERS | LIVENOW FOX

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