OpenAI CFO says data-centre expansion will continue despite Democratic midterm sweep

OpenAI will continue its US data-centre expansion despite the Democratic midterm sweep, which has raised fears of increased regulatory scrutiny, CFO Sarah Friar told CNBC on Friday. Friar said OpenAI must keep investing to meet customer demand and will build relationships with communities to secure necessary computing power. The company has launched a charm offensive, dropping non-disclosure agreements with public officials and sharing construction plans with residents. The midterm results, where Democrats made tighter data-centre scrutiny a campaign pledge, wiped about $2.5 trillion off US stocks on Thursday. Despite this, Google announced a $17 billion data centre in Wyoming, and OpenAI is raising fresh capital after 70% quarterly growth.