The Globe and Mail reports in it Tuesday, Aug. 18, edition that Nvidia will guarantee up to $105-billion to help Microsoft-backed OpenAI lease a large data center in Ohio being developed by SB Energy, a SoftBank subsidiary (all figures U.S.). A Reuters dispatch to The Globe reports that Nvidia said on Monday it will also invest $1.5-billion in SB Energy, months after a $1-billion investment from OpenAI and SoftBank to expand data-centre infrastructure. The new deal is the latest example of Nvidia financing the infrastructure built around its chips, a strategy that helps drive demand but has also raised questions about circular funding flows between the chipmaker and its customers. Last week, scrutiny of such funding deepened after Nvidia partnered with six major financial institutions including BlackRock to launch financing platforms targeting more than $500-billion in third-party funding for artificial intelligence infrastructure. Chief executive officer Jensen Huang said the new deal was not circular financing and that Nvidia is using "its scale and long-term visibility" to help. Nvidia said it plans to selectively lock up prime sites where its chips can run for multiple generations in the future.