President Donald J. Trump and the First Lady hosted a gathering of technology industry leaders at the White House on September 4, 2025 for discussions centered on harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) to propel the U.S. to the forefront of global innovation. Photo: The White House

OpenAI and SoftBank Accelerate $500 Billion “Stargate” Initiative with New $1 Billion Investment in SB Energy

Beyond infrastructure, the partnership integrates AI technology directly into SB Energy’s operations. SB Energy will become a major customer of OpenAI, deploying ChatGPT and leveraging OpenAI APIs for its employees to enhance internal productivity.

RMN Digital Corporate Desk
New Delhi | January 10, 2026

In a major expansion of U.S. artificial intelligence infrastructure, OpenAI and SoftBank Group have announced a joint $1 billion investment in SB Energy (SBE) to accelerate the development of next-generation data center campuses. This strategic partnership, announced on January 9, 2026, serves as a critical milestone for Stargate, a $500 billion American AI initiative originally unveiled at the White House in early 2025.

Expanding the Stargate Vision

The Stargate project was launched by President Donald Trump shortly after his inauguration in January 2025, with a goal to create 100,000 American jobs and secure the nation’s AI future. The initiative is supported by a high-profile team including OpenAI founder Sam Altman, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, and Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison.

Building on this $500 billion commitment, OpenAI and SoftBank Group are now each investing $500 million in equity funding into SB Energy. Additionally, SBE has secured $800 million in redeemable preferred equity from Ares to further bolster its growth as a leading execution partner for AI energy infrastructure.

[ Also Read: President Trump and Tech Leaders Forge Alliance for American AI Dominance ]

The Milam County Data Center

As a core component of this partnership, OpenAI has selected SB Energy to build and operate a massive 1.2 GW data center site in Milam County, Texas. This project is designed to meet the accelerating demand for AI compute while prioritizing local sustainability and economic growth:

Job Creation: The facility is expected to create thousands of construction jobs and foster long-term workforce development.
Environmental Design: The data center is engineered to minimize water usage.
Energy Reliability: To protect Texas ratepayers, the partners plan to build new energy generation capacity specifically to support the site’s power needs.

A New Model for AI Infrastructure

The collaboration establishes a non-exclusive preferred partnership aimed at revolutionizing how AI data centers are built. This model combines OpenAI’s first-party data center design with SB Energy’s expertise in integrated energy delivery, speed, and cost discipline.

Beyond infrastructure, the partnership integrates AI technology directly into SB Energy’s operations. SB Energy will become a major customer of OpenAI, deploying ChatGPT and leveraging OpenAI APIs for its employees to enhance internal productivity. According to OpenAI co-founder and President Greg Brockman, the synergy between OpenAI’s engineering expertise and SB Energy’s infrastructure strength provides a “fast, reliable way to scale compute” through highly optimized facilities.

This infrastructure push is part of a broader trend of large-scale facilities expected to enter service starting in 2026.

Think of the Stargate initiative as a massive new national highway system for the digital age. In this scenario, OpenAI and SoftBank are providing the high-performance vehicles and the funding to clear the path, while SB Energy acts as the specialized construction firm building the essential rest stops and power stations (data centers) that keep the entire network running efficiently without draining the local community’s resources.