Amazon.com Inc. is in advanced discussions to invest approximately $10 billion in OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The potential investment reflects an intensifying competition among tech giants to secure strategic stakes in the fastest-growing segment of the industry — generative AI and its underlying computing infrastructure.

According to Reuters, the talks remain “very fluid” and subject to change as negotiations continue, but Amazon’s interest underscores the escalating demand for capital and computing capacity that AI companies like OpenAI require to advance their technologies. Reuters If the deal goes through, it could place a valuation on OpenAI well above $500 billion, underscoring the company’s rapid growth and its emerging role as one of the most valuable private AI firms globally. 

A key element of the discussions reportedly centers on OpenAI’s use of Amazon’s custom AI chips, known as Trainium, which are designed to provide a competitive alternative to Nvidia’s dominant GPU offerings. The move, if realized, would deepen the partnership between the two companies and allow OpenAI to diversify its hardware ecosystem.

OpenAI’s exploration of this investment comes as the company prepares for a possible initial public offering (IPO) that could value the firm at up to $1 trillion, according to earlier reports. CNA It also follows a major $38 billion cloud services agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) signed in November, which positions AWS as a key infrastructure provider for OpenAI’s compute requirements. 

Currently, Microsoft remains one of OpenAI’s largest strategic partners, holding about a 27% stake in the company and retaining exclusive rights to offer OpenAI’s models through its Azure cloud platform. CNA However, OpenAI’s recent restructuring has opened the door for broader collaboration with other cloud and hardware providers, including Amazon.

The discussions are not limited to a simple financial investment. Sources suggest that OpenAI may also sell an enterprise version of ChatGPT to Amazon, potentially integrating AI capabilities into Amazon’s own suite of services and applications. However, details of such commercial arrangements remain unclear, and representatives from both companies have not publicly commented on the discussions.

Industry observers note that this potential investment not only highlights Amazon’s ambition to expand its influence in AI, but also signals broader shifts in the competitive landscape, with major tech companies vying to support and capitalize on the next generation of machine learning systems. As AI continues to evolve with greater computational demands, partnerships like this could shape the future of artificial intelligence infrastructure and services.