AI program's defenders counter that SoftBank, other investors already have $100bn Elon Musk claims the Stargate project to build AI infrastructure does not have funds to match the $500 billion commitment. © Reuters NAOKI WATANABE and JACK STONE TRUITT January 23, 2025 06:43 JST PALO ALTO, Calif./NEW YORK -- Elon Musk has openly questioned whether a group of tech giants will spend $500 billion to build an artificial intelligence infrastructure in the U.S. On Tuesday, Japanese tech investor SoftBank Group joined U.S. peers OpenAI and Oracle to unfurl the massive spending initiative, dubbed the "Stargate" project. The plan is to initially commit $100 billion then increase spending to $500 billion over the next four years. Read Next This content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau. Register for our newsletters