OpenAI and AMD announce strategic 6-gigawatt GPU partnership worth tens of billions. First 1GW deployment of AMD Instinct MI450 GPUs begins in second half of 2026, challenging Nvidia’s AI chip dominance.
Key Highlights:
- OpenAI and AMD announce 6-gigawatt GPU deployment partnership
- First 1GW of AMD Instinct MI450 GPUs launches in second half 2026
- Deal worth tens of billions, enough to power 4.5 million homes
- AMD stock surges 35% in pre-market trading after announcement
- OpenAI granted option to acquire up to 10% stake in AMD
Massive partnership gives AMD major opportunity to challenge Nvidia’s AI computing dominance while securing OpenAI’s infrastructure future
OpenAI AMD Partnership: Blockbuster Deal Reshapes AI Chip Market
OpenAI just dropped a bombshell that sent shockwaves through the tech industry. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. landed a blockbuster deal with OpenAI to build artificial intelligence infrastructure, giving the chipmaker a chance to show it can mount a challenge to Nvidia Corp. in the AI computing industry.
AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) and OpenAI today announced a 6 gigawatt agreement to power OpenAI’s next-generation AI infrastructure across multiple generations of AMD Instinct GPUs. The first 1 gigawatt deployment of AMD Instinct MI450 GPUs is set to begin in the second half of 2026.
6GW GPU Deployment: Unprecedented Scale
The numbers behind this partnership are staggering. AMD has agreed to supply 6 gigawatts of compute capacity to OpenAI — enough to power up to 4.5 million homes — across multiple generations of its Instinct GPUs, starting with the Instinct MI450 GPU.
Under this multi-year agreement, OpenAI will begin with a 1GW deployment of AMD’s upcoming Instinct MI450 GPUs in the second half of 2026. The companies estimate that bringing 1 GW of AI capacity online costs about $50 billion, with roughly two-thirds of that spent on chips and supporting data-center infrastructure.
AMD Instinct MI450 GPUs: Next-Generation AI Hardware
The MI450, based on AMD’s next-generation architecture, will compete directly with Nvidia’s Blackwell GPUs. OpenAI and AMD engineers have reportedly worked together to define MI450 specifications, ensuring optimal performance for OpenAI’s workloads.
AMD claims the MI450 series will outperform Nvidia’s comparable offerings through hardware and software improvements, many of which will be made with OpenAI’s input. Its current MI355X and MI300X series GPUs, currently used in some workloads for OpenAI, are already strong for AI inference in large language models due to their large memory capacity and bandwidth.
Strategic AMD Stock Impact: 35% Surge
The market reaction was immediate and explosive. AMD stock surged over 35% in pre-market trading after announcing the partnership, demonstrating investor confidence in AMD’s ability to compete in the AI chip space.
As part of the agreement, AMD has given OpenAI the option to buy up to 160 million shares of AMD stock, which amounts to a 10% stake. The first tranche will vest with the initial 1 gigawatt deployment, and additional tranches will vest as OpenAI buys up to the total 6 gigawatts.
OpenAI Infrastructure Strategy: Diversifying Beyond Nvidia
This deal represents OpenAI’s strategic push to diversify its chip partnerships. Last month alone, Nvidia agreed to invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI and supply at least 10 gigawatts; OpenAI and Broadcom also signed a $10 billion deal to develop custom AI chips.
“This partnership is a major step in building the compute capacity needed to realize AI’s full potential,” said Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of OpenAI. “AMD’s leadership in high-performance chips will enable us to accelerate progress and bring the benefits of advanced AI to everyone faster.”
AI Computing Competition: Industry Implications
Under this definitive agreement, OpenAI will work with AMD as a core strategic compute partner to drive large-scale deployments of AMD technology starting with the AMD Instinct MI450 series and extending to future generations.
“We are thrilled to partner with OpenAI to deliver AI compute at massive scale,” said Dr. Lisa Su, chair and CEO of AMD. “This partnership brings the best of AMD and OpenAI together to create a true win-win, enabling the world’s most ambitious AI buildout and advancing the entire AI ecosystem.”
The partnership creates strategic alignment expected to deliver tens of billions of dollars in revenue for AMD while giving OpenAI crucial computing diversity as it builds toward AGI.
