{"slug": "nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project", "title": "Nvidia investing $1.5B in SoftBank data center developer behind OpenAI project", "summary": "Nvidia announced Monday it will invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy, a data center developer backed by SoftBank and OpenAI, and provide up to $105 billion in credit to build OpenAI's Ports-Pike data center near Cincinnati, Ohio, where Nvidia will be the sole compute infrastructure supplier. The facility, which could scale from 4.25 to 8 gigawatts, includes a 9.2 gigawatt natural gas power plant expected to cost $33 billion, reflecting a 66% rise in gas plant costs over two years.", "body_md": "Nvidia [said](https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/securing-the-infrastructure-of-intelligence/) on Monday that it will invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy, a data center linked to SoftBank and OpenAI.\n\nThe investment ensures that Nvidia will be the sole supplier of compute infrastructure at OpenAI’s Ports-Pike data center near Cincinnati, Ohio. Nvidia will also provide up to $105 billion in credit to help build the facility, which could scale from an initial 4.25 gigawatts to 8 gigawatts in size, according to [documents](https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001045810/988230c7-dd29-466b-92dc-5cf34f65b60f.pdf) the company filed with the SEC.\n\nSB Energy’s existing investors include SoftBank and OpenAI. SoftBank had previously held $5.8 billion worth of Nvidia stock, which it [sold in November](https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/11/softbank-sells-its-entire-stake-in-nvidia-for-5point83-billion.html) to help fund other AI investments.\n\nThe data center and power developer will [build a 9.2 gigawatt natural gas power plant](https://www.energy.gov/articles/fact-sheet-department-energy-ensuring-affordable-energy-access-ohio-while-powering-future) on the site, which is land owned by the U.S. Department of Energy. The site previously enriched uranium for the U.S. nuclear arsenal and for U.S. Navy submarines.\n\nThe power plant is [expected to cost $33 billion](https://techcrunch.com/2026/02/19/softbank-to-spend-an-eye-popping-33b-to-build-huge-u-s-gas-power-plant/). The steep sum reflects the skyrocketing costs of building natural gas power plants, which have [risen 66% in the last two years](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/27/data-center-demand-drives-66-surge-in-natural-gas-power-plant-costs/), according to BloombergNEF.\n\nBy the time SB Energy’s power plant and others are completed, they’ll be competing for natural gas with export markets, a confluence that could [triple natural gas prices](https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/14/hyperscalers-might-regret-embracing-natural-gas-if-new-forecast-proves-correct/) in some parts of the country.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project", "canonical_source": "https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/17/nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project/", "published_at": "2026-08-17 15:16:24+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-08-17 15:41:52.306645+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-infrastructure", "ai-chips", "artificial-intelligence"], "entities": ["Nvidia", "SB Energy", "SoftBank", "OpenAI", "Ports-Pike data center", "U.S. Department of Energy", "BloombergNEF"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/nvidia-investing-1-5b-in-softbank-data-center-developer-behind-openai-project.jsonld"}}