OpenAI: From Software Leadership to Hardware Dominance?

OpenAI, the ChatGPT maker, is expanding its focus beyond the digital realm into physical hardware manufacturing, launching a comprehensive request for proposals (RFP) to overhaul its hardware supply chain.

It represents part of a decade-long strategic plan aimed at localising advanced manufacturing and securing leadership in what the company calls the "Intelligence Age".

The programme seeks to build a resilient, US-based ecosystem for components that could define the next decade: consumer electronics, robotics and the vast data centres required to support increasingly complex AI models.

Manufacturing as strategic infrastructure

The RFP outlines an ambitious roadmap that extends well beyond software into silicon, motors and cooling systems.

OpenAI is seeking partners who can help deliver what it describes as a "Silicon Renaissance" – a return to domestic manufacturing that ensures supply chain resilience and national competitiveness.

According to the RFP document: "OpenAI has a long-term ambition to establish US-based hardware manufacturing and assembly that reflects US values, supports resilient supply chains and fosters national innovation leadership."

This goal appears to stem from the belief that, for AI to reach its full potential, the physical infrastructure supporting it must be as sophisticated as the algorithms it powers.

The shift towards domestic manufacturing reflects growing concerns about supply chain vulnerabilities exposed in recent years.

By establishing US-based production capabilities, OpenAI aims to reduce dependence on international suppliers while creating a more agile and responsive manufacturing ecosystem that can adapt to the rapidly evolving demands of AI hardware.

Three sectors driving expansion

OpenAI's strategy is built around three core sectors, each requiring a complex network of suppliers and manufacturers.

• Consumer devices: The company is moving into final assembly, PCB assembly and the development of advanced displays and optics. This could indicate a future where OpenAI-branded hardware becomes a familiar presence in daily life.
• Robotics: To bring AI into physical workspaces, OpenAI is sourcing "critical inputs" including actuators, precision bearings, gearboxes and power electronics.
• Data centres: Potentially the most capital-intensive area, this focuses on the infrastructure that remains largely invisible to end users. This includes power systems such as generators, transformers and UPS, alongside advanced cooling technologies including chillers and cold plates.

The scale of the overall undertaking appears significant.

As the RFP document states: "Over the next 10 years, OpenAI seeks to localise significant portions of the manufacturing for its hardware devices and data centres, including key components, modules and final assembly."

Infrastructure investment and broader implications

The initiative builds on the Stargate Project, which launched in March 2025.

OpenAI has reportedly made substantial progress towards its 10-gigawatt power commitment, with capacity plans now surpassing the halfway point.

The company's leadership suggests infrastructure "has long been destiny when it comes to America's economic success, and that will be especially true in the Intelligence Age".

Through investment in domestic production, OpenAI aims to "catalyse US manufacturing, modernise our energy grid, create well-paid jobs and strengthen American leadership". 

The RFP document notes that discussions around AI often focus primarily on chips, but the reality is considerably more complex.

The company points out that advanced AI "depends on a much broader ecosystem of physical components: the racks, cabling, networking gear, cooling systems, power systems, power electronics, electromechanical modules and testing and assembly capacity are all required to bring it all online at scale".

This represents recognition that even the most advanced digital systems are ultimately constrained by the capabilities of their physical infrastructure.

The success of this ambitious manufacturing programme may well determine whether OpenAI can translate its software leadership into hardware dominance.