The warrants are reportedly part of an agreement designed to secure OpenAI as a major customer for SB Energy’s growing data-center business. The arrangement highlights how AI companies are increasingly using large financial commitments and strategic partnerships to secure the power and computing capacity needed to support future AI development.
SB Energy, which is backed by SoftBank, is rapidly expanding its data-center operations to meet surging demand from the artificial intelligence industry. According to the WSJ report, the company has about 800 megawatts of capacity under construction and nearly 9 gigawatts under contract.
The deal comes as OpenAI and other major technology companies compete for access to the enormous amounts of electricity, advanced computing equipment and data-center capacity required to train and operate increasingly sophisticated AI models.
Earlier this month, Nvidia invested $1.5 billion in SB Energy and agreed to provide a guarantee of up to $105 billion to support OpenAI’s lease of an Ohio data center being developed by the company.
The reported $5.5 billion warrant arrangement therefore adds another major financial component to the growing relationship between OpenAI, SB Energy, SoftBank and Nvidia.
The development also demonstrates how the AI race is expanding beyond chips and software. Electricity, data centers and access to large-scale computing infrastructure are becoming critical strategic assets, with technology companies increasingly locking in capacity years ahead of demand.
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