The Information website quoted participants in private talks about the proposal as saying that Microsoft will likely be responsible for financing the project, which will be 100 times more expensive than some of the largest current data centers.
The site report said that the next phase of major artificial intelligence updates for OpenAI is expected to be launched by early next year, and that Microsoft executives are looking forward to launching Stargate as soon as 2028.
The report added that the proposed computer, which is scheduled to be in the United States, will be the largest in a series of facilities that the two companies are looking to build over the next six years.
The website said that it obtained information about the initial cost of $100 billion from a person who spoke to Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and from a person who had seen some of Microsoft's estimates of the initial cost. The website did not specify these sources.
Altman and Microsoft employees deployed supercomputers in five phases, with Stargate being the fifth phase. Microsoft is working on a smaller supercomputer from the fourth phase of OpenAI, and the company aims to launch it in approximately 2026, according to the site report.
The report stated that Microsoft and OpenAI are in the middle of the third phase of the five-phase plan, and a large portion of the cost of the next two phases is allocated to purchasing the necessary artificial intelligence chips.
“We are always planning for the next generation of infrastructure innovations needed to continue pushing the boundaries of AI capabilities,” Microsoft spokesman Frank Shaw told the site.
The report said the proposed effort could cost more than $115 billion, more than three times what Microsoft spent last year in capital spending for servers, buildings and other equipment.
