OpenAI seeks federal loan guarantees to lower financing costs for AI infrastructure
CFO Sarah Friar framed guarantees as backstops, not direct government subsidies
Commitments with Oracle and SoftBank cited; total buildout estimates exceed $1 trillion
OpenAI’s finance chief in a conference this week said the company is exploring federal loan guarantees to help finance an enormous expansion of AI data-centre and chip infrastructure that OpenAI and its partners say could top $1 trillion.
This move would reportedly shift some financing risk to the government and broaden the pool of lenders willing to fund the buildout.
Speaking at the WSJ Tech event, Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar said government backing, described as guarantees or a “backstop” rather than direct subsidies, would “really drop the cost of the financing,” enabling OpenAI and partner investors to borrow more cheaply for long-lived, capital-intensive AI facilities.
She said OpenAI was looking for “an ecosystem of banks, private equity, maybe even governmental” participants to underwrite the plan.
Scale & Partnerships
The request comes at the backdrop of OpenAI’s massive infrastructure commitments linked to its recent commercial deals. Some outlets have cited figures of roughly $300 billion with Oracle and a $500 billion “Stargate” project involving Oracle and SoftBank. Together with other agreements, these have been referenced in coverage as the basis for the more-than-$1 trillion buildout estimate.
OpenAI has not released a consolidated public accounting of these commitments; the figures reported so far are estimates provided by news organizations.
At the same conference Friar also flatly dismissed immediate plans for an initial public offering, saying an IPO “is not on the cards right now,” and that the company remains focused on scaling rather than listing. Reuters and other outlets carried that remark.
Reaction & Clarification
The proposal prompted swift debate. Analysts questioned whether government-backed guarantees for a private tech company raise policy and competition concerns, while others argued guarantees could unlock lower-cost capital for infrastructure that has broader economic value.
OpenAI and some outlets later emphasised Friar was referring to credit guarantees/backstops to make financing viable rather than seeking direct grants; several reports noted the company subsequently sought to clarify the framing of the remarks.
