OpenAI to acquire 10% stake in AMD in massive GPU deal, shaking up the chip race

OpenAI has struck a blockbuster deal with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) that could reshape the balance of power in the AI hardware race. According to reports, Sam Altman’s company is set to acquire a 10% stake in the chipmaker as part of a multi-year agreement that will see OpenAI deploy an unprecedented amount of AMD’s GPUs to fuel its next-generation models.

The announcement sent AMD stock soaring more than 25% in premarket trading on Monday, a sign of how significant investors view the partnership, CNBC reported. The timing is no accident. Just two weeks ago, AMD’s biggest rival, Nvidia, poured $100 billion into OpenAI, backing Altman’s vision to build massive data centers capable of running increasingly complex AI systems. The AMD deal signals that OpenAI isn’t putting all its chips on one supplier.

Under the agreement, OpenAI will roll out six gigawatts of AMD’s Instinct GPUs over several years and across multiple hardware generations. The first phase begins in the second half of 2026, with a one-gigawatt deployment. Each phase of the rollout is tied to specific performance and volume milestones, creating a clear roadmap for scaling the partnership.

“OpenAI and chip-designer Advanced Micro Devices AMD announced a multibillion-dollar partnership to collaborate on AI data centers that will run on AMD processors, one of the most direct challenges yet to industry leader Nvidia. Under the terms of the deal, OpenAI committed to purchasing 6 gigawatts worth of AMD’s chips, starting with the MI450 chip next year. The ChatGPT maker will buy the chips either directly or through its cloud computing partners,” The Wall Street Journal reported.

AMD CEO Lisa Su said in an interview Sunday that the agreement is expected to bring in tens of billions of dollars in new revenue for the company over the next five years.

To cement the relationship, AMD has issued OpenAI a warrant for up to 160 million shares of its common stock. The first tranche will vest when the initial gigawatt of GPUs is fully deployed, with additional tranches unlocking as OpenAI scales to six gigawatts and hits key technical and commercial targets. If fully exercised, the warrant would give OpenAI roughly 10% ownership of AMD based on the current number of shares outstanding.

OpenAI described the deal as being worth “billions,” though it declined to share exact figures. For AMD, the partnership is a major validation of its GPU ambitions in a market long dominated by Nvidia. For OpenAI, it’s a strategic move to secure supply at unprecedented scale—fueling its push to train and serve increasingly demanding AI models.