On November 01, 2025 OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella joined Brad Gerstner on the “BG2” podcast for a special wide-ranging discussion. The conversation provided the first detailed public clarification of the landmark partnership between the two technology giants, covering everything from Microsoft’s equity stake and model exclusivity to their shared vision for navigating the immense demand for AI compute and the future of the industry.

The Restructured Partnership: A “Great Tech Partnership”

Both leaders celebrated the collaboration, which began in 2019. Altman described it as “one of the great tech partnerships ever,” stating that “without Microsoft and particularly Satya’s early conviction, we would not have been able to do this.”

The announcement on Tuesday clarified the intricate structure of their relationship, which Gerstner sought to break down in simple terms.

Microsoft’s Stake and the Rise of a New Non-Profit:

Microsoft, which has invested approximately $13.5 billion into OpenAI since 2019, now holds a 27% ownership stake in the company on a fully diluted basis. However, Nadella was quick to point out what he sees as the most significant part of the deal. “I think what’s pretty unique about OpenAI is the fact that as part of OpenAI’s process of restructuring, one of the largest nonprofits gets created,” he said. “We are very proud of the fact that we were, we’re associated with the two of the largest nonprofits, the Gates Foundation and now the OpenAI Foundation.”

The new non-profit is capitalized out of the gate with $130 billion in OpenAI stock, dedicated to the mission of ensuring Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) benefits all of humanity. The first $25 billion of its efforts will be directed toward health and AI security and resilience.

Altman elaborated on the structure’s strategic value: “I really like the structure because it lets the nonprofit grow in value while the PBC [Public Benefit Corporation] is able to get the capital that it needs to keep scaling.”

When asked about the non-profit’s focus, Altman explained that while market forces work well in many areas, some require a different approach. “If we can cure a lot of disease and make the data and information for that broadly available, that would be a wonderful thing to do for the world,” he said. The focus on resilience, he added, is about “helping society get through this transition smoothly.”

Model Exclusivity and Revenue Share:

The deal outlines a seven-year period of exclusivity for OpenAI’s leading models on Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform. “We are keeping what Satya termed once and I think it’s a great phrase of ‘stateless APIs’ on Azure exclusively through 2030,” Altman clarified. He confirmed this means other major cloud providers like Amazon and Google will not have access to models like GPT-6. However, he stressed that other products, such as open-source models, Sora, and agents, will be distributed on other platforms.

A revenue-sharing agreement also remains in place, where OpenAI pays a percentage of its revenue to Microsoft. Both the exclusivity and the revenue share will terminate early if an expert panel verifies that OpenAI has achieved AGI.

On the subject of AGI, Nadella maintained a pragmatic view, reiterating his comments from Microsoft’s earnings call that “nobody’s even close to getting to AGI.” Altman added, “I expect that the technology will take several surprising twists and turns and we will continue to be good partners to each other and figure out what makes sense.”

The Trillion-Dollar Bet on Compute

A central theme of the discussion was the staggering demand for computational power. Gerstner highlighted OpenAI’s reported commitment of $1.4 trillion for compute over the next five years, questioning how a company with reported revenues of $13 billion could manage such an outlay.

Altman pushed back forcefully. “First of all, we’re doing well more revenue than that. Second of all, Brad, if you want to sell your shares, I’ll find you a buyer,” he quipped. He expressed profound confidence in the company’s trajectory. “We do plan for revenue to grow steeply. Revenue is growing steeply. We are taking a forward bet that it’s going to continue to grow.”

Nadella supported this view with a strong endorsement of OpenAI’s track record. “As both a partner and an investor, there has not been a single business plan that I’ve seen from OpenAI that they have put in and not beaten it,” he stated. “The business execution has been just pretty unbelievable.”

Both leaders agreed they are currently compute-constrained. When asked if there would ever be enough compute, Altman likened it to energy, where demand is a function of price. “If the price of compute… fell by a factor of 100 tomorrow, you would see usage go up by much more than 100,” he explained.

Nadella revealed the bottleneck is not a shortage of chips, but physical infrastructure. “The biggest issue we are now having is not a compute glut, but it’s a power and… the ability to get the builds done fast enough close to power,” he said. “My problem today… it’s not a supply issue of chips. It’s actually the fact that I don’t have warm shells to plug into.”

The Road Ahead: Scientific Discovery and New UIs

Looking toward 2026, Altman expressed excitement about the evolution of AI’s capabilities, particularly in coding and science. He expects AI agents to go from completing “multi-hour tasks to multi-day tasks” in software creation. More profoundly, he predicted AI would soon contribute to human knowledge. “I hope for very small scientific discoveries in 2026,” he said. “This is a wildly important thing to be talking about.”

Nadella focused on the evolution of the human-computer interface, moving beyond simple chat. He described a future of “macro delegation and micro steering,” where users assign complex tasks to an agent and provide high-level guidance as needed.

This new workflow, Altman suggested, will require new hardware. “I’m very excited that we’re doing new form factors of computing devices because computers were not built for that kind of workflow very well,” he said, envisioning a device with “really good contextual awareness of your whole life and flow.”

Navigating a Patchwork of Regulation

The conversation also turned to the challenges of AI regulation. Both CEOs expressed deep concern about a state-by-state patchwork of laws in the United States, citing Colorado’s AI Act as a prime example. “I don’t know how we’re supposed to comply with that Colorado law,” Altman admitted. “I’m very worried about a 50-state patchwork. I think it’s a big mistake.”

Nadella argued that such fragmentation ultimately harms smaller players. “Between OpenAI and Microsoft, we’ll figure out a way to navigate this,” he said. “The problem is anyone starting a startup… it just goes to the exact opposite of I think what the intent here is.”