OpenAI to invest in efforts to build AI infrastructure overseas

NEW YORK -- U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) research organization OpenAI plans to invest in efforts outside of the country to develop the infrastructure necessary to run AI systems, building on its Stargate effort focused on AI data centers in the United States, according to Bloomberg News.

Under the new program, launched on Wednesday, the ChatGPT maker will partner with national governments to help with efforts like building out data center capacity. The company will also help countries customize OpenAI's products for specific languages and local needs, part of an effort toward what Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman has called "commercial diplomacy."

The funding for the partnerships will come from OpenAI, as well as the governments in each country, the company said. The goal is for the company to pursue 10 international projects to start, but it declined to name where they'll be located. The company says it will seek to work with states that use OpenAI's technology in democratically friendly ways.

The project, called OpenAI for Countries, came into focus after the Paris AI Action Summit, said Chris Lehane, the company's vice president of global policy. At that conference, multiple international leaders asked OpenAI representatives about how they could create their own version of the OpenAI-led Stargate project, which aims to invest 500 billion U.S. dollars in AI infrastructure in the United States.