The CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, has been attempting to build a global alliance of influential figures from the government and business community to support increasing the supply of chips, energy, and data network capacity required to develop artificial intelligence technology.
Anonymous sources claim that Altman met with investors and government representatives in the United Arab Emirates this week to talk about how the private sector can collaborate with nations to support expensive, extensive AI infrastructure.
Altman held a meeting in Washington this week and spoke with officials in several Western countries. The meetings represent Altman’s most recent attempt to allay worries that the supply of chips and other essential infrastructure will not be able to keep up with the accelerating adoption of artificial intelligence.
Altman has been trying to get billions of dollars from investors for a chip venture, to use the money to build up a network of factories to produce semiconductors. Altman’s global outreach spans beyond chip production and now includes energy & data center capacity.
A spokesperson for OpenAI stated in a statement, “As previously reported, OpenAI is having ongoing conversations about increasing global infrastructure and supply chains for chips, energy and data centers. We look forward to sharing more details at a later date.”
According to a source familiar with ChatGPT’s internal operations, enormous amounts of energy required for AI systems, pose a major tech infrastructure challenge.
In the past, Altman has discussed the necessity of an energy “breakthrough” to support the excessively power-hungry technology, and he has proposed that nuclear fusion or less expensive solar power could accelerate the development of AI.
One person said Altman met Martina Strong, the US ambassador to the country this week, in the UAE. He is scheduled to visit Washington later to attend meetings, which are part of ongoing discussions of US-led AI leadership and infrastructure access, with members of the US national security and intelligence communities on Capitol Hill.
In the past, Altman has stated that he thinks cooperation between the US government and the timing and structure of a multibillion-dollar chip project is crucial.
Also Read: Sam Altman’s High-Stakes Chip Venture Aims to Redefine AI’s Future
