Sora 2 and ChatGPT are consuming so much power that OpenAI just did another 10 gigawatt deal

By Lisa Eadicicco, CNN

(CNN) — OpenAI is partnering with Broadcom to design and develop 10 gigawatts of custom AI chips and systems, a massive amount of power that will use as much electricity as a large city. The move further highlights just how power intensive the AI boom has become.

It’s the latest partnership between OpenAI and a high-profile chip company, coming after it struck deals with Nvidia and AMD as the company seeks to secure more computing resources to serve its growing user base. ChatGPT now has 800 million weekly users, and an executive suggested on X that the recently released Sora video generation app is growing faster than ChatGPT.

“Partnering with Broadcom is a critical step in building the infrastructure needed to unlock AI’s potential and deliver real benefits for people and businesses,” Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of OpenAI, said in a press release announcing the deal.

Deployment of the AI accelerator and network systems is expected to start in the second half of 2026.

The deal with Broadcom would use as much power as 8 million US households, according to Reuters, as concerns have been raised about AI’s impact on the environment. A 2024 Department of Energy report on data center energy usage found that data centers are expected to consume about 6.7% to 12% of total US electricity by 2028, up from 4.4% in 2023.

Altman previously said the average ChatGPT query consumes as much energy as a lightbulb would in a couple of minutes. But generating realistic video clips using more advanced models like Sora 2 is likely much more power intensive.

Broadcom shares soared 12% on Monday morning following the announcement.

OpenAI relies on partners like Nvidia for the chips needed to power AI data centers. But creating custom AI accelerators – or chips – will give OpenAI a larger role in the hardware required to power AI services like ChatGPT. OpenAI acknowledged this in its press release announcing the deal, which the company “can embed what it’s learned from developing frontier models and products directly into the hardware, unlocking new levels of capability and intelligence.”

The announcement comes after Broadcom CEO Hock Tan said during the company’s earnings call that it had secured a new $10 billion customer that was believed to be OpenAI.

The-CNN-Wire
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