Nvidia is in advanced talks to provide about $250 billion in financing guarantees for OpenAI’s new data center project in southern Ohio, developed by SoftBank’s energy subsidiary [1, 2, 3, 4]. The total cost of the data center is expected to exceed $500 billion, including Nvidia chips installed within the facility [1, 2, 3, 4].
The financing guarantee from Nvidia would cover the data center lease and debt financing, but not the cost of the Nvidia chips used inside the center [1, 3, 4]. Additionally, Nvidia is discussing separate financing arrangements to support OpenAI’s chip purchases, potentially worth up to $350 billion [1, 5, 3, 4].
The data center requires around 10 gigawatts of power, enough for millions of homes. The first phase aims to be completed by 2028 with approximately 800 megawatts of capacity [1, 3, 4]. This power supply, controlled by the U.S. government, is funded separately by Japan through a trade deal, including a $33 billion investment in a SoftBank-operated natural gas plant [1, 3, 4].
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is involved in managing power access for this project and has recently met with OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, and Google to discuss the data center [1, 3, 4]. OpenAI has been in advanced lease talks for several weeks regarding the site [1, 3, 4].
Nvidia’s financing guarantees aim to reassure lenders about project funding, as OpenAI does not have an investment-grade credit rating [1, 3, 4]. However, Nvidia warned in its latest annual report that these data center financing arrangements could reduce Nvidia’s short-term cash flow and elevate customer credit risk [3, 4].
Beyond this project, Nvidia recently confirmed significant AI investments, including financing talks for OpenAI chip purchases [5]. Nvidia also signed a lease worth up to $50.2 billion over 15 years for Hut 8’s one-gigawatt Texas data center to support AI operations [6]. An Nvidia spokesperson said the company is working with ecosystem partners to accelerate efficient AI infrastructure deployment through its DSX AI factory architecture [6].
The groundbreaking ceremony for the Ohio data center was held on July 24, 2026, with U.S. Commerce Secretary Lutnick, SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son, and U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm attending [4]. On July 26, the Wall Street Journal reported Nvidia’s talks on financing guarantees for OpenAI’s data center lease and debt [1, 2]. Nvidia confirmed its AI investment plans the next day [5].
The first construction phase in Ohio is scheduled for completion in 2028 with 800 megawatts of power capacity [1, 3, 4].
