At the inauguration of President Trump, Open’s chief executive Sam Altman was sent to the overflow room, while other tech billionaires like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg took important places on the dice under the capital Rotonda.
But a few days ago, before flying to Washington, Mr Altman was on the phone with Mr Trump, preparing the announcement that Mr. Musk would be pushed forward and administration for artificial intelligence to Mr. Altman’s company. The new agenda will be put in the center.
On a 25 -minute call, Mr Altman appealed to Mr. Trump a big story and a great deal. Mr Altman told the president that the tech industry will achieve artificial general intelligence-this fictitious moment when technology is similar to human intelligence-during the Trump administration, according to three people familiar with the call. And before the rivals of China, Openi, Oracle and Softbank, they had completed a $ 100 billion contract to build data centers nationwide to get there.
The next day of the inauguration, Mr. Altman stood behind Mr Trump in the White House Roose Room when Mr Trump announced the deal, called the Star Gate, and “The Biggest AI Infrastructure in History Act The project is called “.
The Star Gate had been working for months, but Mr Altman and his partners took time to announce that Mr Trump was allowed to take his support in his first day in his first day.
“We will not be able to do this without you,” Mr Altman said in front of a gathering of reporters. “
Since Mr Trump’s election, billionaires from Silicon Valley have created a riot to affect the new administration. None of these has been more successful than Mr Musk, who has supported Trump’s campaign with more than $ 250 million in support of his money, and now apparently has the power to reduce jobs and budgets in the federal government.
Mr Trump’s choice and internal position with Mr. Musk’s new administration could close the door on Mr Altman’s influence in Washington. Mr Altman, 39, a long -time Democratic Donor and was a sharp critic of Mr. Trump during his first term. Moreover, he was closer to the top of Mr. Musk’s enemies. They both fought for the control of the open, and are still fighting it in court. Mr Musk also formed his AI company to compete with Mr Altman’s company.
Mr. Ultman succeeded in reducing Mr. Musk and making Openi ahead of China a new administration’s newborn AI agenda, and Mr. Altman’s ability to change the shape in the Silicon Valley was evidence of Mr. Altman’s capabilities and almost two decades The agreement on the agreement was signed. When it comes to talking, Mr. Trump’s flexible loyalties as well as the limits of Mr. Musk’s ability to influence the tech policy were offered.
Before the presidential election, Mr Altman worked quietly in Mr Trump’s internal constituency, according to an interview of more than a dozen people familiar with Mr Altman’s campaign to win Mr Trump. Many details of this companionship, which had been going on for months, had never been reported before.
In a statement emailed to the New York Times, Open spokesman Liz Bourgeova said the company is looking forward to working with President Trump. “
The White House did not respond to the commentary requests.
Mr Altman leaned on a relationship with North Dakota’s final nominee for Mr. Trump’s final nominee, and co -founder of the software company Oracle, Larry Allison, and the founder of the Run. Japanese collective soft bank.
During the Biden administration, Mr. Altman became a familiar face in Washington, he met with a bilateral group of lawmakers to guide White House officials and AI rules. According to the person familiar with the management on condition of anonymity, he regularly interacted with Commerce Secretary Jenna Ramondo through a private text thread.
When the 2024 elections approached, Mr Altman questioned President Biden’s ability to win. But he also donated several organizations of the state Democratic Party in 2023, along with Mr Biden’s re -election campaign.
He also donated for Republican campaigns (but not the Trump campaign) and regularly spoke to Republican lawmakers. And privately, Openi was hedating his stake. According to two men familiar with the meeting, in early June, two officials of the two Open met with Mr Trump in a hotel room in Las Vegas. Mr Altman was also chosen to attend the meeting, but bowed after a positive examination for Covade.
The meeting was organized by Mr Bergam. Openai’s president, Greg Brockman, had a one -year -long relationship, born in Thomson, some of the ND’s Openi staff called him two very important tech people who have developed so far –
Both people said that during a meeting in Las Vegas, Mr Brookman and Open Chief Operating Officer, Brad Light Cape, showed Mr Trump to the company’s AI video generator, Surah, which has not yet been issued to the public. It was Through technology, anyone can produce videos – such as a herd of ice grass in the field of ice grass – by typing a phrase in a box on a computer screen.
The construction of such technology, they explained, that companies like Openi need large -scale computer data centers that are in large quantities of electricity. He appealed Mr Trump’s property to focus on the language around the construction and infrastructure, appealing to Mr. Trump’s property, and said these great facilities would be necessary because the United States guided AI’s development with China. –
Since he accepted the Republican nomination next month, Mr Trump improved the importance of power in the world of Ai “Ai is very needed – literally, doubled from what is now available in our country. , Can you imagine? “He said.
But since Mr Altman and other Openi executives worked to strengthen political contacts, they were struggling to secure $ 100 billion needed for the star gate.
Mr Altman’s biggest challenge has been the company’s reliance on investors. Openi collected more than 13 billion from Microsoft in exchange for a special deal to buy his computing power from Tech Dev. But Openi wanted even more computing power.
At the end of 2023, when Mr. Ultman Microsoft’s chief executive, Satya Nadella, was talking to make the Billion 100 billion in the new data center infrastructure – a project called “Star Gate” – The Open Board of Directors unexpectedly dismissed it. He was restored five days later, but Mr Nadella was infiltrated and decided not to invest money for the Star Gate. According to two men familiar with Microsoft negotiations, Mr Altman needed another way to build a star gate.
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Mr Altman was discussing possible investment with Soft Bank and Mr. Son. The two men met at the Openi offices in the early 2024 summer, according to three men familiar with their discussions. After Microsoft agreed to a discount in his special deal with the Open I, Startup signed a $ 10 billion data center deal with Oracle and proceeded for something bigger.
When Oracle built a new data center campus in the Texas city of Abelin, Mr Altman hoped that it would be extended to the Billion 100 billion project and Mr Nadella had already imagined months ago. But the Biden administration expressed concern over the open -out efforts to earn extra money from investors in the Middle East. And potential investors are feared that the government will show slowdown in providing approval of a project that requires a large amount of land and electricity.
After Trump was elected, the feelings around the deal changed. In the next several weeks, each star gate in the Soft Bank, Oracle, and Openi agreed to put the money, three men familiar with the negotiations said. He also received funds from the UAE -controlled tech investment firm MGX.
As the inauguration approached, many AI rivals of Mr Altman met with the president elected president in Palm Beach, FLA’s Mar-A-Logo. This included Mr. Musk and Mr Zuckerberg, who are providing Meta AI technology in the AN. Attempts to value Openi technology.
According to three people familiar with the meeting, Mr. Trump had a meeting in Palm Springs with Howard Lotnik, a candidate for Commerce Secretary for Commerce Trump, in Palm Springs.
After donating Million 1 million to Trump’s opening fund, Mr Altman was invited to the opening festivals. But it is unclear who knows who, according to four persons familiar with the arrangements, arranged Mr. Altman’s Friday afternoon phone call with the president.
On the occasion of the opening day, Mr. Ultman, Mr. Allison and Mr. Son were at the Capital Building ceremony, but they were widely ignored by the people. According to four people familiar with the meeting, early the next day, they gathered in a suit from Washington’s Five Star Rugs Hotel to find out how they would unveil their partnerships in the world. While they were walking on cold deductions and fruits, they tried to draft a blog post on the screen hanging on the wall. At first, they could not find the screen to work. Then Mr Altman, the youngest of the three, worked it.
In the afternoon, the star gate partners boarded the White House in a caravan and agreed with Mr Trump in this initial phone call and went to the visitor’s entrance to a public program. But they were waiting for 10 to 20 minutes in 10 degrees Cold. The next day in Mr Trump’s office, the White House computer system faced problems. According to three men familiar with the moment, Mr Alisson had forgotten his driver’s license.
Finally, Mr. Altman, Mr. Beta, and Mr. Allison went to Roosevelt’s room behind Mr Trump. In his inaugural remarks, Mr Trump once again cited the power requirements of the data centers, which he “has” large, beautiful buildings that are employed to many people. “
He introduced Mr. Ultman, who was wearing a brown suit, blue tie, and American flag on his lapt. –
That night, in a couple of couples to X, Mr Musk attacked the deal, emphasizing that Mr Altman and his partners do not have the initial $ 100 billion for his project, he He has finally promised to invest in the future that he promised $ 500 billion. .
The next day, Mr Altman took X with new observations about the president.
“I won’t agree on everything, but I think he would be incredible in many ways for the country!” He wrote.
The administration did not support Mr Musk. “The American people should take the words of President Trump and the CEO,” the White House press secretary, Crown Levit, told Fox News the same day. “This investment is coming to our great country, and US jobs are coming with them.”
The president also demolished. In a clear reference to Mr. Trump’s dislike for Mr Altman, Mr Trump told reporters, “He hates one of people.” “But I hate people too.”
After less than a week, US financial markets unexpectedly messed up when a Chinese startup unveiled a powerful AI technology called Deptyk, which was built with less special chips by many experts It was. Pandit was asking whether the Star Gate was the right move.
Mr Altman returned to Washington and had dinner with Republican lawmakers two days later. The next morning, he spoke with Congress members, policy makers and think tank leaders in a private program in the shadow of a capital, in a shining rental place near Google and Amazon’s lobbying shops.
When Mr. Altman was asked what Defesk means because he and his partners pledged 100 billion billion for new data centers, Mr Altman edited the question. “$ 500 billion,” he said. Then he answered it.
Since companies like Openi continue to increase their computing resources, their AI technologies are improving.
“We want to do this,” he said.
Theodore Shelifer supported the reporting.
