Sam Altman (left) is CEO of OpenAI, which is almost half-owned by Microsoft, whose CEO is Satya Nadella (right). Does Microsoft’s soft influence constitute anticompetitive co-optation? Barbara Ortutay/AP
Microsoft and OpenAI are working on a $100 billion (92.6 billion euros) supercomputer, according to The Information.
The project could start as early as 2028 as part of the companies’ five-phase plan.
The US-based supercomputer, called Stargate, would far exceed current computing power.
This is a machine translation of an article from our US colleagues at Business Insider. It was automatically translated and checked by a real editor.
Microsoft and OpenAI are planning an unprecedented supercomputer that uses millions of specialized server chips. This computer could cost up to 100 billion US dollars (the equivalent of almost 92.6 billion euros), reported The Information this week.
The supercomputer is based in the USA and is known as “Stargate”. It would be the centerpiece of a five-phase plan focused on a series of supercomputer installations. The companies want to build the plan over the next six years, the paper writes. Stargate, phase five of the plan, could become operational as early as 2028. This is what people involved in the proposal tell The Information.
Executives from both companies have already drawn up plans for the data center project, which would power OpenAI’s artificial intelligence, the paper said.
A Microsoft spokesperson declined to comment directly on the report. But he emphasized the company’s proven ability to build groundbreaking AI infrastructure.
“We’re always planning the next generation of infrastructure innovations to push the boundaries of AI capabilities,” a company representative told Business Insider.
OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.
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Microsoft has already invested more than 13 billion US dollars (around 12 billion euros) in OpenAI. The company would likely provide funding for Stargate, according to the report. OpenAI currently uses Microsoft’s data centers to power its generative AI system ChatGPT. In return, Microsoft receives the exclusive right to resell OpenAI’s technology to its own customers.
Microsoft insiders told Business Insider earlier this month that the company’s strategy is increasingly focused on working with OpenAI. That led some to fear that Microsoft is essentially becoming an IT department for the startup.
According to the report, the supercomputer could be 100 times more expensive than the largest data centers currently in operation. The project shows how much money will flow into the industry as artificial intelligence develops further over the next few years.
Stargate also has the potential to far exceed the computing power that Microsoft currently supplies to OpenAI from its data centers across the country, but would require at least several gigawatts of power to do so, The Information reports.
However, Microsoft’s involvement in the project depends on OpenAI keeping its promise to improve the capabilities of its AI, a source writes to the paper.
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Sam Altman wants to develop his own server chips
Finding the necessary server chips is the main factor behind Stargate’s high price, according to the report. Finding sufficient energy sources for the project could also be a challenge. The two companies have discussed using alternative energy sources such as nuclear power, the sources say.
Demand for AI chips has reached a fever pitch, allowing a few companies — most notably Nvidia — to control the market. Altman has expressed his frustration with the “brutal” situation. He announced earlier this year that he wanted to make his own chips.
The chip dilemma is just one of several details that still need to be clarified with regard to Stargate. People familiar with the project told The Information that Microsoft needs to figure out how to fit more GPUs into a single rack than it currently does to boost the performance of the chips. The company also needs to find a way to protect the chips from overheating, the report says.
It’s not clear where Stargate would be located or whether it would be built in a single data center or multiple nearby centers, The Information reports.
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