Once hailed as the cornerstone of America’s global AI dominance, the $500 billion Stargate project is now floundering amid internal rifts between its key backers: OpenAI and SoftBank.
Originally announced by former President Trump in January, the initiative aimed to transform the US into a world leader in artificial intelligence by building massive AI infrastructure over the next four years.
Initially, Stargate was supposed to be a collective effort, involving OpenAI, SoftBank, Oracle, and MGX. However, it quickly narrowed into a two-man show, with OpenAI and SoftBank taking control-only to begin drifting apart shortly thereafter.
Despite bold promises to invest $100 billion ‘immediately,’ both companies have since scaled back. Their only tangible plan so far is to build a modest data center in Ohio-by the end of 2025. As of now, Stargate hasn’t secured a single confirmed data center deal under its name.
According to reports, OpenAI is reluctant to use SB Energy sites-SoftBank’s own energy company-for infrastructure. Meanwhile, OpenAI has pushed ahead with the Stargate brand for projects that exclude SoftBank altogether, including new data centers in Abilene and Denton, Texas.
OpenAI isn’t slowing down. It recently signed a massive 4.5GW data center agreement with Oracle worth $30 billion annually, starting in roughly three years. This follows another major deal with CoreWeave, bringing OpenAI’s total infrastructure spending to $100 billion this year alone-precisely the original Stargate target, but notably without SoftBank’s involvement.
Ironically, while both companies claim they’re still working together on Stargate and plan to deliver 10GW of data center capacity in the US, the reality tells a different story. The vision that once promised to reshape America’s AI future now looks increasingly fragmented-and perhaps even doomed.