AMD Guarantees $300M Loan to AI Startup as Nvidia Nears $30B OpenAI Deal
AMD has guaranteed a $300 million loan for AI startup Crusoe at a 6% interest rate, using chips and equipment as collateral and offering a buyback if Crusoe can’t secure AI customers. Nvidia shares rose after reports it is close to finalizing a $30 billion investment in OpenAI.
1. AMD Backs $300M Loan for Crusoe
Advanced Micro Devices has agreed to guarantee a $300 million loan for cloud computing startup Crusoe, securing an interest rate near 6% by collateralizing the deal with its own chips and related hardware and offering to repurchase unsold inventory if customer demand falls short.
2. Competitive Implications for Nvidia
By replicating Nvidia’s model of financing AI-focused startups and locking in chip sales, AMD aims to challenge Nvidia’s dominance in AI infrastructure, potentially diverting future data-center deployments toward AMD hardware and intensifying competition in the high-performance GPU market.
3. Nvidia Nears $30B OpenAI Investment
Nvidia shares climbed after investors learned the company is close to committing a $30 billion strategic investment in OpenAI, a move that could deepen its partnership with the leading AI research firm and reinforce future demand for Nvidia’s AI accelerators.