OpenAI executives have fielded numerous questions about how they plan to pay for the $1.4 trillion in data center construction and usage commitments they’ve racked up this year, given that their revenue — while rapidly growing — represents an annual run rate of $20 billion, CEO Sam Altman said in an article on X on Thursday.
Altman’s comments came in response to comments from OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar, which she quickly returned to. Speaking at a Wall Street Journal event on Wednesday, Friar said she wants the U.S. government to “guarantee” her company’s infrastructure loans. This, she explained, would make the company’s loans cheaper and help ensure it could always use the latest and greatest chip.
A secured loan is a loan guaranteed by the government, so that if the company defaults, taxpayers will foot the bill. Lenders tend to reward low-risk loans like this with better terms.
Friar said that using older chips, which is what OpenAI must do, subject to compute constraints, makes financing options more affordable, but that the company’s goal is to always put its cutting-edge models on the latest and greatest chips.
So how do you pay for this revolving door of tokens? She said the company was looking for an “ecosystem” to help, including banks, private equity firms and, she hopes, the government.
When asked what she wanted the government to do, she said: “…the safety net, the guarantee that allows financing to happen. That can really reduce the cost of financing but also increase the loan-to-value ratio, so the amount of debt you can take on in addition to some equity.”
She also hinted that such talks, particularly in the US, were already underway: “I think we’re seeing that. The US government, in particular, has been incredibly forward-thinking and has really understood that AI is almost a national strategic asset.”
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After the Wall Street Journal published the clip of her discussing this desire for a federal safety net, and many X users with large followings mocked the idea, Friar quickly walked back her comments.
“I want to clarify my comments earlier today. OpenAI is not seeking government support for our infrastructure commitments. I used the word ‘backstop’ and it muddied the subject,” she posted on LinkedIn.
On Thursday, Trump’s AI czar David Sacks weighed in. Sacks (who himself is a major Silicon Valley VC), wrote on X that the US has no plans to bail out any AI company.
“There will be no federal bailout for AI. The United States has at least five big model companies. If one of them fails, others will take its place,” he said, adding that what the government wants to do is make it easier “to get permits and produce electricity.” Without naming her, he also forgave Friar for “clarifying” his position.
Following this, Altman wrote a lengthy article on X echoing Sacks’ sentiments.
“We neither have nor want government guarantees for OpenAI data centers. We believe that governments should not pick winners or losers, and that taxpayers should not bail out companies that make poor business decisions or lose in the marketplace,” he wrote.
He also clarified that guaranteed loans had been discussed – but not for his business.
“The only area where we have discussed loan guarantees is in supporting the construction of semiconductor factories in the United States, where we and other companies have responded to the government’s call and would be happy to help (although we have not formally applied).”
It’s hard to blame Friar for starting this idea. She’s right that such a guarantee would make her fundraising job easier, even if, as Sacks writes in her text, the idea of asking for a taxpayer-funded bailout is “ridiculous.”
While she’s now heard a resounding public “no” from someone she needs in her corner for this idea, she and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman can expect plenty more questions about how they plan to pay for their $1 trillion build.
Indeed, Altman seems prepared for such a thing.
“We expect to finish this year above $20 billion in annualized revenue and reach hundreds of billions by 2030. We are looking at commitments of approximately $1.4 trillion over the next 8 years,” he wrote, adding that the company is happy with its “prospects,” particularly its enterprise offering, new consumer devices and robotics.
