Microsoft’s absence from OpenAI’s Stargate announcement follows months of tension between the companies and signals a new era in which the longtime partners will be less reliant on each other. At a White House press conference,

The new agreement “includes changes to the exclusivity on new capacity, moving to a model where Microsoft has a right of first refusal (ROFR),” Microsoft says. “To further support OpenAI, Microsoft has approved OpenAI’s ability to build additional capacity, primarily for research and training of models.”

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.

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