Nvidia backing $105 billion in financing for OpenAI data center in Ohio

The deal is Nvidia's latest in a string of financing maneuvers to support the sprawling AI data center buildout, which has raised concerns about circular financing in the AI trade. Last week, Nvidia joined forces with six large asset managers to build financing platforms to deploy $500 billion in third-party capital for datacenter projects.

As part of the Ohio deal, SB Energy and SoftBank will build power sources supporting 10 gigawatts of energy and invest at least $4.2 billion into regional grid infrastructure. Nvidia will invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy.

OpenAI said the new data center will support 35,000 new construction jobs through 2032 and 2,500 long-term positions.

The new data center will give OpenAI more access to the high-end chips and compute power that underlay the entire AI architecture.

OpenAI President Greg Brockman told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Monday that compute is a "fundamental resource" for the industry.

"Compute is really becoming the new oil, the new limited resource of the AI age," he said.