Microsoft, OpenAI plan $100 billion data center with ‘Stargate’ AI supercomputer: report

Microsoft And Open AI The Information reported Friday that plans are in the works for a data center project that could cost $100 billion and include an artificial intelligence supercomputer to be launched in 2028.

OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

The rapid adoption of generative artificial intelligence technology has increased the demand for AI data centers that are capable of handling more advanced tasks than traditional data centers.

The Information reported that Microsoft would likely finance the project, which is expected to be 100 times more expensive than the largest existing data centers, citing people involved in private discussions about the proposal. .

The report added that the proposed US-based supercomputer would be the largest in a series that companies plan to build over the next six years.

The Information attributed the $100 billion tentative cost to a person who spoke to Altman about it and a person who has seen Microsoft’s preliminary cost estimates. He did not identify those sources.

Altman and Microsoft have expanded supercomputers into five phases, with Stargate as the fifth phase. According to the report, Microsoft is working on a small, fourth-stage supercomputer for OpenAI to launch around 2026.

The report says that Microsoft and OpenAI are in the middle of the third phase of a five-phase plan, which includes acquiring the AI ​​chips required for a significant portion of the cost of the next two phases.

AI chips are often sold at high prices. The chip company Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told CNBC in early March that the latest “Blackwell” B200 artificial intelligence chip will cost between $30,000 and $40,000.

Microsoft also announced a pair of custom-designed computing chips in November last year.

The report states that the new project will be designed to work with chips from different suppliers.

“We are always planning for next-generation infrastructure innovations needed to push the frontiers of AI capability,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Reuters. The spokesperson did not directly comment on the report about the planned launch of the Stargate supercomputer.

The report said costs for the project could exceed $115 billion, more than triple Microsoft’s capital expenditures for servers, buildings and other equipment last year.

© Thomson Reuters 2024

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