SoftBank, OpenAI’s $100 Billion AI Venture to Tap Solar Power

A $100 billion venture that President Donald Trump heralds as accelerating artificial intelligence in the US is expected to depend in part on power sources favored by his climate-focused predecessor — solar and batteries.

Trump unveiled the Stargate joint venture involving SoftBank Group Corp., OpenAI and Oracle Corp. on Tuesday. The companies will initially invest $100 billion to build US-based infrastructure including data centers for OpenAI. While company executives during the White House announcement outlined a goal for Stargate to deploy “at least” $500 billion down the road, they didn’t elaborate on what will power the infrastructure.

US President Donald Trump, from left, unveils Stargate with Oracle’s Larry Ellison, SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son and OpenAI’s Sam Altman at the White House on Jan. 21.

Photographer: Aaron Schwartz/Sipa/Bloomberg

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