Microsoft will no longer be the exclusive provider of new cloud computing capacity to OpenAI — a new twist in their relationship that clears the way for OpenAI to work with Oracle and others on the $500 billion Stargate AI project announced by the companies Tuesday with President Trump at the White House.

Microsoft is OpenAI's largest investor, with a 49% stake, translating to $14 billion. As part of its complicated partnership with the ChatGPT maker, Microsoft was once the exclusive cloud computing partner for OpenAI. However, OpenAI's $500 billion investment in computing infrastructure changes its relationship with Microsoft.

Microsoft said its cloud-computing business will continue to grow slowly in the current quarter as the company struggles to build enough data centers to handle demand for its artificial intelligence products.

The software giant was previously the exclusive cloud provider for OpenAI and now retains right of first refusal.

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Microsoft won’t be the sole cloud provider for OpenAI but can decide whether to deliver the capacity or allow another company to do it.

Fresh on the heels of a controversy in which ChatGPT maker OpenAI accused the Chinese company behind DeepSeek R1 of using its AI model outputs against its terms of service, OpenAI's largest investor Microsoft announced on Wednesday that it will now host DeepSeek R1 on its Azure cloud service.

Microsoft MSFT.O has made Chinese startup DeepSeek's R1 artificial intelligence model available on its Azure cloud computing platform and GitHub tool for developers, the U.S. company said on Wednesday. The AI model will be available in the model catalog on the platforms and will join more than 1,800 models that Microsoft is offering.

Microsoft has tested Wall Street's patience by plunking down huge amounts of cash in pursuit of profits from AI that have yet to satisfy investors.

If there were any fears that spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure was about to slow down, that was put to rest when President Donald Trump announced the new Stargate AI project last week.

The OpenAI logo at the company’s 2023 developer conference. (GeekWire File Photo / Todd Bishop) Microsoft will no longer be the exclusive provider of new cloud computing capacity to OpenAI — a ...