Nvidia CEO says pledge to invest US$100 billion in OpenAI ‘never a commitment’; Korea stocks sink
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang did not say exactly how much the company might contribute but described the investment as “huge”.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
TAIPEI - Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said the company’s proposed US$100 billion (S$127 billion) investment in OpenAI was “never a commitment” and that the company would consider any funding rounds “one at a time”.
“It was never a commitment,” Mr Huang told reporters on Feb 1 during a visit to Taiwan, the island of his birth, where he was mobbed by fans at every step.
“They invited us to invest up to US$100 billion and of course, we were very happy and honoured that they invited us, but we will invest one step at a time,” he said.
As part of a letter of intent signed in September 2025,
The deal was designed to help OpenAI build data centres with a capacity of at least 10 gigawatts of power – equivalent to the peak electricity demand of New York City – equipped with Nvidia’s advanced chips to train and deploy AI models.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Jan 30 that the investment plan announced in September 2025 had stalled after some inside Nvidia expressed doubts about the deal.
Citing unidentified people familiar with the matter, the Journal reported that Mr Huang had privately emphasised that the US$100 billion agreement was non-binding, criticised what he has described as a lack of discipline in OpenAI’s business approach, and expressed concern about competition.
When asked on Jan 31 about the report that seemed to suggest he was not very happy with OpenAI, Mr Huang said: “That’s nonsense.”
“We will invest a great deal of money,” he told reporters then.
“I believe in OpenAI. The work that they do is incredible. They’re one of the most consequential companies of our time.”
Mr Huang did not say exactly how much the company might contribute but described the investment as “huge”. He added that Nvidia’s contribution to OpenAI’s current funding round would not approach US$100 billion.
Nvidia’s plans to invest in OpenAI, a key buyer of its advanced AI chips, have stoked concerns about the circular nature of AI deals over the past year. Investors are increasingly questioning how these partnerships – in which tech companies are investing in AI businesses that purchase their products – may be artificially propping up demand.
In a separate such deal, Nvidia recently announced plans to invest an additional US$2 billion in CoreWeave, a cloud computing provider that is also a key customer.
Mr Huang’s remarks contributed to the plunge in South Korea’s stock market on Feb 2. The Kospi fell as much as 5.5 per cent, with a slide in futures triggering a halt in program trading on the benchmark index. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, the South Korean chip giants that engineered the country’s world-beating gains since the start of 2025, fell more than 5 per cent each.
“Jensen’s comments likely had a near-term sentiment impact, particularly on AI-exposed names that have rallied strongly year to date,” said Mr Gary Tan, a portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments. “The remarks primarily served as a profit-taking catalyst, as we see some unwinding of crowded trades across the market.”
Seoul has been one of the world’s hottest stock markets since 2025, thanks to voracious demand for memory chips to work alongside AI processors such as those made by Nvidia.
The market has climbed to a valuation of over US$3.3 trillion, overtaking Germany last week to rank as the world’s 10th-largest, just behind Taiwan. BLOOMBERG
