NVIDIA Quietly Scales Down OpenAI Data Center Guarantee from $250 Billion to Under $120 Billion

The largest financing deal in the history of AI infrastructure is quietly being downsized.

NVIDIA and OpenAI are close to finalizing a financing agreement for a large data center campus in Ohio. However, according to insiders, the two parties have restructured the deal—NVIDIA's financial guarantee has been compressed from the originally planned $250 billion to less than $120 billion. The news was first reported by The Wall Street Journal on August 14, followed by Reuters.

Behind the halving of the guarantee size lies pressure from investors. According to sources speaking to the media, the direct cause of this adjustment is investor concern over NVIDIA's risk exposure resulting from its practice of leveraging its own balance sheet to drive chip demand. Previously, when the media first reported the $250 billion guarantee plan, NVIDIA's stock fell 5% on the same day—the market voted with its feet, sending a clear message.

Guaranteeing Only Phase One, Leaving the Rest Open

The core logic of the new proposal is "phased guarantees."

According to reports, the option currently under discussion by NVIDIA is to provide financial guarantees only for the approximately 5 gigawatts of computing power in the project's first phase, covering debt financing required for data center leases and construction; financing arrangements for the remaining 5 gigawatts will be decided later.

This guarantee functions similarly to credit enhancement for a loan—with NVIDIA's endorsement, lenders have greater confidence in the security of project funds, thereby reducing the project's financing costs.

On the OpenAI side, two sources revealed that negotiations are still ongoing regarding the signing of binding leases for the entire 10-gigawatt project, with a timeline expected within the next few days. The overall agreement could be signed as early as this weekend.

The data center campus is being developed by SB Energy, a subsidiary of SoftBank. Once completed, it will be the largest data center project announced globally to date.

The Full Picture of This Deal

The financing structure of the Ohio project involves far more than just this single guarantee.

NVIDIA is also separately negotiating a chip procurement financing agreement—providing financial support for OpenAI's purchase of chips, with the total amount involved in the project potentially reaching up to $350 billion. The electricity required for the project is controlled by the U.S. government, while the funding is being provided solely by Japan under the framework of recent trade agreements.

Goldman Sachs is serving as the financial advisor to SB Energy, while Morgan Stanley is providing advisory services to NVIDIA.

In terms of timeline, this is not the first attempt at collaboration between NVIDIA and OpenAI. In September 2025, the two parties signed a memorandum of understanding, in which NVIDIA committed to building at least 10 gigawatts of computing power for OpenAI and agreed to contribute up to $100 billion to help cover costs. However, reports indicate that the agreement subsequently stalled due to internal doubts within NVIDIA regarding the proposal.

NVIDIA Simultaneously Introduces External Capital

During the negotiations for this transaction, NVIDIA announced this week that it is partnering with six financial institutions—Apollo Global Management, Blackstone, BlackRock, Brookfield Asset Management, Goldman Sachs, and KKR—to jointly establish a "Computing Power Financing Platform."

According to NVIDIA's announcement, these institutions plan to deploy over $500 billion in external capital over the next few years, aiming to provide financing for chip purchases at "attractive interest rates."

The intention behind this layout is clear: to shift financing risks from NVIDIA's own balance sheet to the external capital markets.

It is worth noting that although OpenAI is valued at $852 billion, it is currently still operating at a loss. Its financial strength to undertake large-scale infrastructure commitments at the 10-gigawatt level remains under market scrutiny. Reuters pointed out in its report that "the company's ability to make large-scale commitments for artificial intelligence infrastructure remains questioned."