Hajra Naz
During the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media, and Telecom Conference in San Francisco, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang suggested that the company may not invest further in OpenAI or Anthropic. According to Huang, both AI companies are expected to go public later this year, and once that happens, opportunities for additional private investments will likely disappear.
While this explanation could be straightforward, the situation appears more complex. NVIDIA is already generating enormous revenue by supplying the advanced AI chips that power both OpenAI’s and Anthropic’s systems. Because of this strong business relationship, the company may not need to invest more capital to benefit financially.
NVIDIA’s Investment Strategy Focuses on Expanding Its AI Ecosystem
When asked for clarification, an Nvidia spokesperson pointed to comments from the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call. Huang explained that Nvidia’s investments are designed to expand and strengthen its AI ecosystem, rather than simply chase financial returns.
By investing in companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, Nvidia has helped accelerate the adoption of its GPU infrastructure across the rapidly growing AI industry. Those earlier investments have already helped deepen Nvidia’s role as a core technology provider for leading AI developers.
Read More: Trump Says China and Other Nations Can’t Access Nvidia’s Top AI Chips
Concerns About Circular AI Investment Deals
However, analysts have noted that some of these partnerships can appear somewhat circular. When Nvidia first announced plans last September to invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI, MIT Sloan professor Michael Cusumano described the arrangement as “kind of a wash.”
His reasoning was simple: while Nvidia was investing billions into OpenAI, the AI company was simultaneously planning to spend massive sums purchasing Nvidia chips to power its AI infrastructure. In other words, money could effectively flow back and forth between the same companies.
These dynamics have raised concerns among observers that the AI investment boom might be forming elements of a market bubble.
OpenAI Investment Commitment Shrinks
Those concerns may explain why Nvidia’s actual investment ended up being far smaller than the initial headline figure. When OpenAI recently closed its $110 billion funding round, Nvidia’s contribution totaled around $30 billion, well below the previously discussed $100 billion commitment.
Huang has dismissed speculation that tensions exist between Nvidia and OpenAI, calling the idea of bad blood between the companies “nonsense.”
Read More: How China Is Advancing to Compete Against Nvidia’s AI Chips
Tensions With Anthropic Add More Complexity
NVIDIA’s relationship with Anthropic has also faced complications. Shortly after Nvidia announced a $10 billion investment in the company last November, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei made controversial remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Without naming Nvidia directly, Amodei criticized U.S. chip companies that sell high-performance AI processors to approved Chinese buyers, comparing the practice to “selling nuclear weapons to North Korea.” The comment sparked controversy across the tech industry.
Political Fallout Surrounding Anthropic
The situation escalated further when the Trump administration recently blacklisted Anthropic, preventing federal agencies and military contractors from using its technology. The decision came after Anthropic reportedly refused to allow its AI models to be used for autonomous weapons systems or large-scale domestic surveillance.
Within hours of that announcement, OpenAI revealed its own partnership with the Pentagon, emphasizing safeguards and compliance measures. Anthropic criticized the move, calling the claims surrounding the partnership “mendacious.”
Claude Surges in App Store Rankings
The public reaction to these developments was immediate. Within 24 hours, Anthropic’s Claude AI assistant surged to the top of the free-app rankings on Apple’s U.S. App Store, temporarily overtaking ChatGPT.
Just weeks earlier, the app had ranked outside the top 100, according to data from Sensor Tower, highlighting how quickly public interest shifted amid the controversy.
Read More: Anthropic’s Claude Hits No. 1 on the App Store After Pentagon Fallout
Nvidia Caught Between Two Rival AI Giants
For Nvidia, the situation leaves the company holding stakes in two influential AI startups that are increasingly moving in different strategic directions. The growing rivalry between OpenAI and Anthropic could create challenges for Nvidia as both companies compete for customers, partnerships, and political support.
A Quiet Exit From a Complicated Situation
Whether Jensen Huang anticipated these tensions is unclear. However, his explanation that IPO timelines are limiting future investments does not fully match how late-stage private investing typically works.
A more likely interpretation is that Nvidia is gradually stepping away from an increasingly complex and politically sensitive AI landscape, while continuing to profit from the massive demand for its AI chips.
