On Tuesday, Elon Musk raised doubts about the timeline for an Ohio data center project backed by Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) and intended to support OpenAI’s growing artificial intelligence infrastructure needs.
Musk Doubts Timeline for Nvidia-Backed Data Center
Musk responded to a report that Nvidia has agreed to provide a guarantee of up to $105 billion tied to OpenAI’s lease of a sprawling data center being developed by SoftBank Group (OTC:SFTBF) (OTC:SFTBY)-owned SB Energy in Pike County, Ohio.
"This will take much longer to bring online than they think," Musk said in a post on X.
Nvidia Caps Ohio Data Center Commitment at $105 Billion
According to documents Nvidia filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, its aggregate payment obligations under the initial commitment are capped at $105 billion and subject to certain conditions.
Those include the data center meeting applicable ready-for-service requirements, with the first commitments expected to begin in 2028.
Nvidia also plans to invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy, following a $1 billion investment from OpenAI and SoftBank earlier this year.
The Ohio campus is expected to eventually support as much as 8 gigawatts of power capacity, with an initial 800 megawatts targeted to come online in 2028.
OpenAI has agreed to lease the site for 20 years, while Nvidia will serve as its exclusive chip provider.
Why Musk’s Warning Matters
Musk’s skepticism comes as his own companies race to build massive AI computing infrastructure.
Earlier this month, Musk said Space Exploration Technologies Corp (NASDAQ:SPCX) would exclusively use Nvidia GPUs and is targeting roughly 10 gigawatts of AI compute capacity by the end of 2027, compared with about 1.4 gigawatts currently.
Nvidia’s AI Infrastructure Push
The project underscores Nvidia’s increasingly central role in the AI infrastructure boom. The company’s data center revenue reached $75 billion last quarter, marking a 92% year-over-year increase.
Last week, Nvidia announced a partnership with six major Wall Street asset managers to unlock more than $500 billion in financing for AI infrastructure.
Price Action: Nvidia closed Tuesday at $219.74, down 2.34%. The shares slipped another 0.21% to $219.28 in after-hours trading, according to Benzinga Pro.
According to Benzinga Edge Rankings, Nvidia ranks in the 99th percentile for growth and maintains positive short-, medium- and long-term price trend ratings.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo courtesy: IAB Studio on Shutterstock.com
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