The CEO of OpenAI, which operates ChatGPT, is in talks to raise trillions of dollars in funding as part of a broader initiative to rally the world around the idea of ensuring the future of AI.

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Sam Altman hopes to raise between $5 trillion and $7 trillion from investors to expand its global AI chip-building capabilities and create a more robust supply chain for AI infrastructure. Altman has apparently held discussions with the government of the United Arab Emirates and others to raise this amount.

Neither OpenAI nor Altman confirmed this report, but shortly before the Journal article was published, Altman appeared on X to pitch the idea of building an AI infrastructure to limit costly and potentially damaging bottlenecks to AI innovation. He seemed to pitch the idea. [Building a large AI infrastructure, and a resilient supply chain, is critical to economic competitiveness."

As head of OpenAI, arguably the world's most important AI company, Altman found himself at the center of the broader artificial intelligence thrust. Like many pro-AI pundits, he argues that the pace of innovation in the marketplace is too slow, and that it is crucial for the world to rally around the expected warp-speed growth of the AI industry to ensure the infrastructure to facilitate it.

However, raising trillions of dollars to accomplish this task is no easy task. As reported by the Journal, the entire global semiconductor industry will not reach $1 trillion in annual sales until 2030. And just last year, less than $1.5 trillion in debt was issued to companies in any one industry.

If Altman succeeds in raising such a huge amount of cash, it would be a monumental feat in raising capital. It would also require the cooperation of governments, businesses, and non-profit organizations around the world. Most importantly, it will show the world that we are all in on AI.

Still, there is no doubt that the world will need to significantly expand its chip manufacturing capacity if the rapid AI revolution is to reach its full potential. Whether Altman is the right man for the job, however, may be debatable.

Just this past November, Altman was removed as CEO by the board of directors, causing ripples not only within OpenAI but throughout the tech industry, with support from OpenAI's investor, Microsoft, and OpenAI employees who threatened to quit following his removal. Mann was put back in charge of OpenAI within days.

And now, with this latest news, Altman clearly feels confident and secure enough in his position at OpenAI, and in the AI field more broadly, to tackle what may be the most ambitious and, if successful, most earth-shattering investment round in history.