Nvidia cuts OpenAI data center guarantee to $105B from $250B, signaling AI financing concerns

The $105 billion guarantee sits at the center of a widening tension in AI infrastructure financing: the sector's reliance on self-funding by the companies that benefit most directly from continued chip purchases. Nvidia's reduction from $250 billion signals that even the company most advantaged by this circular arrangement has felt pressure to dial back its exposure. The stock market reaction to the original $250 billion guarantee—a 4.5% intraday drop—made that investor skepticism visible and costly, likely influencing the final negotiated figure.

The deal structure itself softens Nvidia's financial risk. Rather than guaranteeing the entire project cost outright, Nvidia's funding helps SB Energy secure financing by supporting lease and power payments and guaranteeing infrastructure value if OpenAI defaults. This arrangement allows Nvidia to appear committed while transferring much of the actual burden to SoftBank, SB Energy, and the financial markets. Simultaneously, Nvidia has mobilized outside capital through partnerships with six major financial institutions targeting more than $500 billion in third-party funding for AI infrastructure—a shift made possible by July SEC staff guidance that exempted certain data-center debt from Dodd-Frank securitization rules. In other words, Nvidia is moving away from carrying risk itself and toward orchestrating a web of external investors to shoulder it instead.