Amazon Finishes $50 Billion OpenAI Investment Ahead of Schedule, Grabs 5% Stake

Amazon has wrapped up its full $50 billion investment in OpenAI well before schedule, securing roughly a 5% equity stake and becoming a core shareholder in the ChatGPT maker. The company invested $13.7 billion in the second quarter and added another $21.3 billion after June ended, completing the commitment even though neither trigger condition, an IPO or a major AI breakthrough, had been met.

Microsoft’s Loosened Grip Opens Door for AWS

The shift became possible after OpenAI renegotiated its cloud agreement with Microsoft in April, ending Microsoft’s near-exclusive hold on OpenAI’s computing resources and allowing AWS to formally step in as a cloud provider.

Amazon Also Doubles Down on Anthropic

Alongside its OpenAI bet, Amazon has committed up to $33 billion to Anthropic, with $18 billion already deployed, as part of a broader push to expand its Trainium chip business and strengthen AWS’s position in the AI cloud market.

Amazon shares jumped roughly 15% after quarterly earnings;