OpenAI signs $38 billion cloud computing deal with Amazon Web Services
OpenAI agreed to purchase $38 billion in cloud services from Amazon over seven years, marking its first major contract with AWS and reducing reliance on Microsoft.
November 3, 2025 - 11:24 AM ET • 2 min read
OpenAI, the artificial intelligence startup valued at $500 billion, announced Monday that it has signed a massive agreement to purchase $38 billion in cloud computing services from Amazon Web Services (AWS) over the next seven years. The deal marks OpenAI's first contract with AWS, the global leader in cloud infrastructure, and represents the latest step in the company's strategy to diversify its computing supply beyond its primary investor, Microsoft.
The substantial influx of computing power is intended to help OpenAI build and deploy its advanced artificial intelligence technologies, including the widely used ChatGPT chatbot. Under the terms of the agreement, OpenAI will immediately begin running workloads on AWS infrastructure, utilizing hundreds of thousands of Nvidia graphics processing units (GPUs) located in the United States, with plans for significant capacity expansion in the coming years.
An AWS executive confirmed that the company would eventually build out additional, completely separate infrastructure specifically dedicated to meeting OpenAI's needs. Some of the required capacity is already available and is being utilized by the startup.
The announcement caused Amazon stock to climb approximately 5% in trading following the news.
The agreement underscores OpenAI's growing need for immense computing resources, which has driven the company to seek partnerships outside of its initial exclusive arrangement with Microsoft.
From 2019 through 2023, OpenAI purchased all of its computing power exclusively from Microsoft as part of a complex partnership. That contract stipulated that OpenAI must buy solely from Microsoft, its primary investor, unless Microsoft granted explicit approval for deals with other companies.
Over the past 18 months, however, OpenAI reportedly complained that it was unable to secure all the computing power necessary to meet its rapid development goals from Microsoft alone. This constraint led Microsoft to allow the startup to sign separate deals with other cloud and chip companies.
The $38 billion contract with AWS follows previous agreements OpenAI has reached with other major technology firms, including chipmakers Nvidia and AMD, and the cloud computing company Oracle, as it works to secure the vast infrastructure required to train and run increasingly powerful AI models. The diversification of its supply chain signals OpenAI's transition from a startup heavily reliant on a single partner to a major enterprise capable of dictating terms across the cloud computing market.