Amazon is in talks to make a huge investment in OpenAI, as big tech companies race to control the future of AI.
According to people familiar with the matter, Amazon may invest up to $50 billion in OpenAI in the coming weeks. The discussions are still ongoing, and the final amount could change.
The talks are being led directly by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. If the deal goes through, it would be one of the largest investments ever made in an AI company.
Raising $100B funding
OpenAI is currently raising a massive new funding round that could total $100 billion, valuing the company at around $830 billion. The company is also speaking with other major investors, including strategic partners like Microsoft and Nvidia, as well as global investors such as SoftBank.
Altman has also been in talks with Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds as OpenAI seeks to secure long-term capital to support its rapidly growing AI infrastructure needs.
Amazon’s interest is notable because it has already invested billions in Anthropic, one of OpenAI’s main rivals. Amazon also provides cloud services and AI infrastructure to Anthropic and recently built an $11 billion data centre campus to support its computing needs.
At the same time, Amazon is cutting costs to focus more on AI. The company recently announced plans to lay off around 16,000 corporate employees. It has also said it expects to spend $125 billion in 2026, mostly on AI data centres and custom chips.
For OpenAI, the talks show how important large, long-term partnerships have become as AI systems grow more expensive to build and run. For Amazon, the potential deal would strengthen its position in the global AI race, even as it continues to back multiple players in the space.
