OpenAI partners with Broadcom to produce its own AI chips

OpenAI is teaming up with Broadcom to produce its own computer chips to power its AI data centers. The deal is the latest in a series of partnerships designed to reduce the company’s reliance on Nvidia and secure enough computing power to fuel apps like ChatGPT and Sora and realize its mission to develop superintelligent AI. OpenAI said designing its own chips allows it to “embed what it’s learned from developing frontier models and products directly into the hardware, unlocking new levels of capability and intelligence.” The partnership, announced Monday, will enable OpenAI to develop and deploy “10 gigawatts of custom AI accelerators” using its own chips and systems. To put that number in context, the output of a typical nuclear reactor is around one gigawatt. Broadcom is expected to start deploying racks of equipment in the second half of 2026 and the deal should finish by the end of 2029, the announcement said. OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman said the partnership “is a critical step in building the infrastructure needed to unlock AI’s potential and deliver real benefits for people and businesses.” The announcement comes after OpenAI struck a six gigawatt deal with AMD and a 10 gigawatt deal with Nvidia. The infrastructure partnerships have only recently become possible after OpenAI altered its exclusive arrangement with Microsoft for AI compute. Creating custom chips is part of a growing movement within the tech industry as major players like Meta, Google, and Microsoft work to bolster vital supply lines amid soaring demand and reduce their reliance on Nvidia’s AI chips. To date, custom chip projects have not posed a plausible threat to the chipmaking behemoth, though they have handsomely benefited other chipmakers like Broadcom.