BRIEFINGS · Chips and AI hardware
NVIDIA's 10-Q discloses guarantees capped at $105 billion for an OpenAI data center campus in Ohio
NVIDIA's 10-Q says it guaranteed up to $105 billion of leases for an OpenAI data center campus in Ohio, and up to $3.5 billion for other AI clouds.
On 26 August 2026 NVIDIA's quarterly report said that in August 2026 it entered into guarantees, capped at a total of $105 billion, to provide credit support on a land, power and shell buildout with affiliates of SB Energy Corp., on behalf of an OpenAI affiliate for a campus in Pike County, Ohio. Each guarantee generally becomes effective as its lease begins, with the first of nine phases expected in fiscal year 2029, and covers defined portions of lease and power payments. Payment obligations are triggered upon certain tenant defaults. The report also lists guarantees for select AI cloud partners' data center leases, with a stated maximum of $3.5 billion, and says the SB Energy guarantees "may expose us to substantial obligations over extended periods" and that "Although OpenAI has agreed to reimburse and indemnify us for certain losses, we may not recover amounts promptly or in full."
Why it matters to you: NVIDIA now stands behind part of a big AI customer's data center bills.
What this doesn't prove
Company statements from the 10-Q. The figures are caps and stated maximums, not amounts paid. The 10-Q says each SB Energy guarantee generally becomes effective when its lease begins. The guarantees end on certain events set out in the filing, or when each lease term ends. NVIDIA's 10-Q says the amount "is expected to decrease over the course of each phase’s 20-year lease term". NVIDIA's 10-Q table of maximum gross amounts for its guarantees totals $108.5 billion. The $3.5 billion for AI cloud partners is reduced as partners pay their lessors, and partners have placed $712 million in escrow.
Next fixture
- Whether any payment is triggered, and how NVIDIA reports these guarantees in later filings.
- Whether NVIDIA uses its option to add credit support for the additional 3.8 gigawatts.
Sources
- Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 26 July 202626 August 2026
Every figure above comes from these sources. Every briefing is checked against its sources before it publishes. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell anything, and this is not investment advice. See the disclosures.
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