OpenAI weighs leasing Ohio data center with Nvidia backing, The Information reports (June 9)
FILE PHOTO: OpenAI logo, a keyboard, and a robotic hand in this illustration taken June 5, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
June 9 : OpenAI is in talks to lease a proposed 10-gigawatt data center campus on federal and private land in Ohio, in a deal that could include financial backing from Nvidia, The Information reported on Tuesday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the discussions.
Here are some details:
• The campus could cost at least $500 billion to build, based on current prices for chips, labour, power and other inputs, the report said.
• OpenAI would control the equipment at the facility under a 20-year lease, with payments starting once operations begin; the first phase is expected in 2028, the report added.
• The facility, among the largest of its kind, would be developed by SB Energy, a unit of SoftBank, on Department of Energy land in southern Ohio. Some of the campus will also be built on private land, the report said.
• Nvidia is expected to supply hardware in the facility and provide a financial guarantee for OpenAI's lease, according to the report.
• Reuters could not immediately verify the report. OpenAI and Nvidia did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment outside regular business hours.
• Earlier this year, the ChatGPT maker paused its proposed 'Stargate' data centre project in the UK, citing regulatory hurdles and high energy costs.
• Separately, Apollo and Blackstone are financing a $35 billion AI capacity expansion for Anthropic using Broadcom chips, Reuters reported this week.
