Trump touts $500bn project to build A.I. infra in America

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a major investment to build infrastructure for artificial intelligence (AI) led by Japanese giant Softbank, cloud giant Oracle and ChatGPT-maker OpenAI.

- Agencies

WASHINGTON:

The venture, called Stargate, "will invest $500 billion, at least, in AI infrastructure in the United States", Trump said in remarks at the White House.

"This monumental undertaking is a resounding declaration of confidence in America's potential," he said, a day after his swearing in for a second term.

OpenAI's chief executive Sam Altman, SoftBank's chief Masayoshi Son and Oracle founder Larry Ellison attended the announcement.

Their project is committed to invest an initial $100 billion and up to $500 billion over the next four years in the project, according to Son.

The venture comes as big tech players are scrambling to meet AI's voracious computing needs, as well as find the electric power necessary to expand the new technology.

Trump said Stargate will be building the physical and virtual infrastructure to power the next generation of advancements in AI, including the construction of "colossal data centers".

OpenAI later said in an X post that the project "will not only support the re-industrialisation of the United States but also provide a strategic capability to protect the national security of America and its allies."

It added that SoftBank and OpenAI were the lead partners for Stargate, with SoftBank having financial responsibility and OpenAI having operational responsibility.