OpenAI has signed a $38 billion cloud computing agreement with Amazon, marking one of the largest infrastructure deals in artificial intelligence to date.
The company said on Monday that it will begin using Amazon Web Services (AWS) immediately, with all capacity expected to be deployed before the end of 2026 and the option to expand further into 2027 and beyond.
The deal follows OpenAI’s recent corporate restructuring, which removed previous restrictions requiring Microsoft’s approval for external cloud partnerships.
Under the agreement, OpenAI will leverage AWS’s vast computing resources to support the scaling of its next-generation AI models and “agentic workloads,” as part of its broader goal to expand global computing power.
The partnership adds to a growing list of OpenAI’s infrastructure collaborations, including Oracle, SoftBank, and partners in the United Arab Emirates, as well as semiconductor suppliers Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom.
The agreement comes amid debate about whether massive AI infrastructure investments are inflating a potential AI bubble, with analysts warning that the industry could be overvaluing a technology that has yet to deliver clear long-term financial returns.
Despite such concerns, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has defended the company’s spending plans — estimated at over $1 trillion over the next decade — arguing that the investments are necessary to sustain innovation and achieve breakthroughs in artificial general intelligence (AGI).
