TechCrunch Industry News Jensen Huang says Nvidia is pulling back from OpenAI and Anthropic; plus, Rivian is betting its future on one of the fastest EV launches in US history
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Mar 6, 2026 A rundown of why Nvidia says it will stop new investments in leading AI labs and how complex chip-and-capital deals may be shrinking its commitments. An exploration of tensions around national security and shifting alliances in the AI industry. A deep look at Rivian’s R2 launch and whether a rapid U.S. ramp to 20–25k sales could rescue the company’s future.
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Nvidia Pulling Back From AI Startup Investments
- Nvidia is likely stopping future private investments in OpenAI and Anthropic as IPOs will close that window.
- Huang framed it as strategic ecosystem focus, but timing and tangled chip-for-equity deals make the exit look like avoiding a complicated situation.
Circular Chip-for-Equity Deal Put Pressure On The Investment
- The original $100 billion OpenAI pledge to Nvidia effectively created a circular commitment where OpenAI would buy Nvidia chips valued similarly to Nvidia's stake.
- That circularity likely contributed to shrinking Nvidia's final $30 billion investment in OpenAI's $110 billion round.
Anthropic Rhetoric And Blacklisting Complicate Nvidia Ties
- Nvidia's tie to Anthropic grew tense after Anthropic's CEO compared selling chips to approved Chinese customers to selling nuclear weapons to North Korea.
- That rhetoric, followed by the U.S. blacklisting of Anthropic, deepened the strategic complexity for Nvidia.