OpenAI chief executive officer Sam Altman, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, and Oracle chairman Larry Ellison arrived at the White House on Tuesday, January 21, along with the President of the United States Donald Trump, and executives from other technology companies, to announce large-scale private sector investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure in the US.
At the mentioned event, Mr. Trump said that OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle are set to become partners in a new $500 billion machine intelligence infrastructure firm called Stargate. At the initial stage, each of the specified brands will invest $100 billion in Stargate. It is also expected that additional financial injections will be made into the company. The sum of these investments will amount to $500 billion. The mentioned financial injections are expected to be implemented in the coming years.
Donald Trump said that Stargate will build the physical and virtual infrastructure to power the next generation of artificial intelligence, including data centers throughout the United States. He called it the largest AI infrastructure project in history.
Larry Ellison stated that the first data project is already under construction in Texas.
It is worth noting that the leading players in the artificial intelligence industry have been actively making statements for several months, containing a certain degree of anxiety about the future, that they will need more data centers and chips in the coming years. Computing power is required for any machine intelligence system to operate. The larger and more functional the corresponding system is, the more the mentioned capacities are needed. The chips are used for training and ensuring the subsequent operation of artificial intelligence systems. As the AI industry is on a trajectory of active development and virtually constant expansion, the demand for microcircuits will grow. Also, the leading players in the artificial intelligence industry note that in the coming years, they will need more electricity and water resources to carry out their activities. Ambitious projects in the AI area will not be implemented without meeting the relevant needs. At the same time, artificial intelligence has already demonstrated significant capabilities related to processing huge amounts of information, including through an analytical approach, and generating original content, and has impressive prospects. Futurological forecasts assess as a realistic probability a scenario in which machine intelligence, at a certain stage of its technological evolution, surpasses the human mind in terms of cognitive abilities. This means that artificial intelligence can make significant progress in exploring the universe and solving existential issues that are difficult for human consciousness. It is possible that AI will become a new stage of global intellectual evolution.
Also, the artificial intelligence industry is gradually becoming a new space of geopolitical rivalry. In this context, it is worth noting that AI can be used as a multifunctional working tool and a means of planning and organizing activity processes in various industries. This means that artificial intelligence, which guarantees the accuracy of tasks and a high level of efficiency, can become a new platform for economic growth. The country’s ability to develop AI systems already in the foreseeable future will determine its prospects on a large scale.
Oracle is one of the biggest data center operators in the United States. SoftBank has enough funds to finance the expansion of the artificial intelligence infrastructure, which is expected to cost billions of dollars.
It is worth noting that Sam Altman called on US officials to assist in building the mentioned infrastructure to ensure that the United States remains ahead of China in the AI arms race. In this context, it was noted separately that artificial intelligence can have an impact on everything, including the economy and military potential.
Media reported that last year the head of OpenAI met with SoftBank CEO to solicit investments in new semiconductor plants for building AI chips.
Last month, Sam Altman, during a conversation with media representatives, said that, in his opinion, Donald Trump would be very good at raising artificial intelligence infrastructure investments. The head of OpenAI stated that the mentioned infrastructure is very important. In this context, he noted that artificial intelligence differs slightly from other types of software in that it requires huge amounts of infrastructure, power, computer chips, and data centers.
It is worth mentioning that last Monday, January 20, Donald Trump reversed an executive order passed by former United States President Joe Biden in 2023. This executive order was aimed at monitoring and regulating the risks associated with AI.
It is worth noting that against the background of the active development and scaling of artificial intelligence, the issue of cybersecurity is growing in urgency. Scammers also have access to AI, which is why their activities have become more sophisticated. To counteract the corresponding threat in the cyber environment, personal awareness of users is important. For example, an Internet search query such as how to know if my camera is hacked will allow anyone to get information about signs of unauthorized access to the device.
