Nvidia's cash power fuels every stage of the AI boom

Nvidia’s dominant position in AI hardware translates into exceptionally high profit margins, estimated at about 75%, and a projected $150 billion of free cash flow for the fiscal year that ends in January 2027. The firm plans to spend roughly $25 billion on research and development while also using its cash reserves to underwrite purchases of its advanced computing platforms. Recent moves include a $2 billion investment in CoreWeave, a $30 billion stake in OpenAI’s $110 billion capital raise, and backing Emerald AI’s technology that turns data-center power use into flexible grid assets.

In partnership with Apollo, BlackRock, Blackstone, Brookfield, Goldman Sachs and KKR, Nvidia aims to create financing vehicles that could channel more than $500 billion of third-party capital into AI infrastructure, effectively treating AI compute as a new asset class. These actions illustrate how Nvidia is shifting from merely supplying chips to also financing the entire AI supply chain.