OpenAI has entered into a long-term partnership with AMD to power its next wave of artificial intelligence infrastructure. The agreement will see OpenAI deploy up to 6 gigawatts of AMD’s high-performance Instinct GPUs, beginning with a 1-gigawatt rollout in 2026 using the new MI450 chips.
The deal marks a major diversification in OpenAI’s hardware strategy, which has historically leaned heavily on Nvidia. It underscores the growing demand for compute capacity to train and run next-gen AI models.
The financial and strategic scale of the deal is remarkable.
AMD has issued OpenAI a warrant for up to 160 million shares, worth more than $26 billion at current prices. If OpenAI hits its deployment and share price milestones, it could become a 10% stakeholder in AMD, further aligning the two companies’ futures.
With AMD’s stock reportedly soaring more than 35%, the market reaction reflects a broader rebalancing in the race for AI chip dominance.
Why It Matters: The partnership between AMD and OpenAI is a realignment of the AI compute economy. By reducing reliance on Nvidia and embracing AMD as a core supplier, OpenAI is building a more resilient and diversified supply chain to support its colossal infrastructure goals. This deal could accelerate hardware innovation, redistribute competitive power in the semiconductor market, and set a precedent for future equity-for-compute partnerships in the AI space.
- OpenAI to Deploy 6 GW of AMD GPUs Across Multiple Chip Generations: OpenAI will deploy up to 6 gigawatts of computing power using AMD’s Instinct GPUs, starting with the MI450 series in late 2026 and extending into future generations. The multi-year, multi-generational rollout positions AMD as a primary compute partner for OpenAI’s expanding infrastructure roadmap. The scale of this deal is second only to OpenAI’s recently announced $100 billion Nvidia agreement, indicating escalating compute requirements for training and deploying advanced AI models.
- AMD Issues 160M Share Warrant, Potentially Giving OpenAI 10% Ownership Stake: AMD has issued OpenAI a warrant to purchase up to 160 million shares of its stock as part of the partnership. Vesting is tied to specific milestones, including the successful deployment of GPU capacity and AMD achieving certain share price thresholds. If OpenAI exercises the full warrant, it could take a 10% ownership stake in AMD based on current share counts. This equity-for-compute structure ensures strong alignment of interests and a growing trend in the AI economy where ownership and infrastructure are increasingly interlinked.
- Wall Street Responds: Following the announcement, AMD’s stock surged more than 35% in premarket trading, reflecting investor optimism about the company’s newfound central role in AI infrastructure. Analysts see the deal as a major validation of AMD’s Instinct GPU roadmap, which had previously trailed Nvidia in adoption. By securing OpenAI as a flagship customer, AMD has boosted its revenue prospects and proven its credibility as a competitor in the AI accelerator market.
- OpenAI’s Infrastructure Ambitions Cross $1 Trillion Mark in Two Weeks: This deal is part of a broader infrastructure push by OpenAI, which has committed nearly $1 trillion in buildout investments over the past two weeks alone. In addition to the AMD and Nvidia deals, OpenAI has signed a $300 billion agreement with Oracle for data center space and partnered with Broadcom to co-design custom AI chips. These moves are part of a 23-gigawatt roadmap to support OpenAI’s increasingly complex AI models, including the Sora video generator and future GPT iterations.
- Hedging Dependency Shows Supply Chain Fragility: Although OpenAI recently partnered with Nvidia in a landmark $100 billion deal, this AMD announcement intentionally hedges against over-reliance on a single supplier. By diversifying across AMD, Oracle, and Broadcom, OpenAI is proactively addressing the fragility of global chip supply chains. This move also introduces competitive pressure into a market previously dominated by Nvidia, which could lead to faster innovation and a broader ecosystem of suppliers capable of supporting the next era of AI.
Major challenge to Nvidia: OpenAI’s massive new computing push will run on AMD chips – CNN
AMD stock skyrockets 35% as OpenAI looks to take stake in AI chipmaker – CNBC
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