OpenAI plans to spend $1 trillion on AI development

OpenAI has drawn up a five-year business plan outlining commitments worth more than $1 trillion, according to The Financial Times.

The company intends to seek new revenue streams and additional funding to advance the development of next-generation artificial intelligence. OpenAI is exploring potential contracts with governments and enterprises to create personalized AI products, while also expecting to generate income from new tools for shopping, its video platform Sora, and AI agents.

To support this expansion, the company is considering “creative” ways to raise debt financing for building large-scale AI infrastructure. One of the key directions could be Stargate, a network of advanced data centers where OpenAI would act as a computing resource provider.

Among the company’s broader ambitions are monetizing intellectual property and entering the online advertising market. OpenAI also plans to release consumer hardware products, including an AI assistant designed in collaboration with former Apple designer Jony Ive.

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In recent weeks, CEO Sam Altman has signed agreements securing over 26 gigawatts of computing power from Oracle, Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom. According to FT estimates, the total value of these commitments could exceed $1 trillionover the next decade.

OpenAI’s annual recurring revenue currently stands at around $13 billion, with 70% coming from ChatGPT’s standard $20 monthly subscription. The chatbot has more than 800 million regular users, but only about 5% are paid subscribers. Executives say they aim to double this figure.

The company’s operating losses reached approximately $8 billion in the first half of the year, despite its revenue more than doubling year over year. OpenAI’s partners, including Oracle, have covered much of the initial infrastructure costs, but the company expects to eventually take on these expenses as operating costs.

Powering 20 gigawatts of capacity would require the equivalent of 20 nuclear reactors, leading some analysts to question whether such demand can realistically be met by a single company.