TL;DR
- Nvidia announced on 12 November that Jensen Huang had resigned as president, chief executive and director with immediate effect. The board accepted the resignation on 11 November and named finance chief Colette Kress interim CEO, according to the 8-K; the press release calls Harvey C. Jones the board's first-ever chair.
- Nvidia's 10-Q for the quarter to 26 July lists $56bn of commitments tied to AI cloud capacity and data centre leases. Its guarantees carry a maximum gross exposure of $108.5bn, payable only if a tenant defaults.
- In Europe the limit is still grid power: Norway's grid operator has paused further reservations of grid capacity for data centres until 1 August 2027 at the latest, according to Statnett.
Nvidia's guarantees on a single Ohio campus are capped at $105bn. They cover defined portions of the lease and power payments for about 4.25 GW of IT load in Pike County, Ohio. The campus is to be leased to an affiliate of OpenAI on 20-year terms, according to Nvidia's 10-Q. On Thursday Nvidia announced that Jensen Huang had resigned as president, chief executive and director with immediate effect; the board accepted the resignation on Wednesday, its 8-K shows. Colette Kress, its finance chief since 2013, is interim CEO.
For landlords and lenders the question is plainer than the boardroom: who stands behind the leases on the AI campuses now being built and financed?
Why do a chipmaker's leases and guarantees matter to landlords?
Because Nvidia signs for data centres in two different ways. Its 10-Q lists $56bn of additional commitments. Of that, $36bn is AI cloud agreements, under which Nvidia commits to buy cloud services from the AI clouds that buy its systems. The other $20bn is data centre leases not yet started, signed by Nvidia for third parties. They run for about 15 years, are due to start in Nvidia's fiscal 2028 to 2029, and Nvidia expects to reassign them.
The guarantees are a separate book. Nvidia gave land, power and shell guarantees of up to $3.5bn for select AI cloud partners' lease obligations if they default. It also gave guarantees capped at $105bn for the Ohio campus, for a maximum gross exposure of $108.5bn, the 10-Q shows. Reuters adds both groups together into $164.5bn of "financial commitments" (Reuters). That total is $56bn of commitments plus $108.5bn of maximum contingent guarantees, not a single contracted payment obligation. CNBC, which calls this support "backstops", says Nvidia's obligations to other firms have earned it the nickname "the central bank of AI" (CNBC).
The Ohio deal reads like a property document. Nvidia signed the guarantees with SB Energy on 17 August for about 4.25 GW of IT load, capped at $105bn, with an OpenAI affiliate as tenant, its 8-K shows. OpenAI has agreed to reimburse Nvidia for any amounts it pays under them (8-K). Each guarantee generally takes effect only when its lease starts, the first of nine phases expected in Nvidia's fiscal 2029. In exchange, the site will host Nvidia AI infrastructure exclusively, subject to limited exceptions (10-Q).
Nvidia signs for data centres in two ways: commitments it will pay, and guarantees it pays only if a tenant defaults
| Item in Nvidia's 10-Q, Note 10 | Kind | US$ billion |
|---|---|---|
| AI cloud agreements: Nvidia commits to buy cloud services from the AI clouds that buy its systems | Commitment | 36 |
| Data centre leases not yet started, signed by Nvidia for third parties: about 15 years, due to start in Nvidia's fiscal 2028 to 2029, to be reassigned | Commitment | 20 |
| Land, power and shell guarantees for select AI cloud partners' lease obligations, if a partner defaults | Contingent guarantee, maximum | 3.5 |
| SB Energy guarantees for an OpenAI affiliate's 20-year leases, about 4.25 GW, Pike County, Ohio | Contingent guarantee, cap | 105 |
Source: Nvidia 10-Q, Note 10, quarter to 26 July 2026, filed 26 August 2026. Commitments total US$56bn. Guarantees are a maximum gross exposure of US$108.5bn, payable only on certain tenant defaults; the table does not add the two kinds together.
Neither Thursday's 8-K nor the press release mentions any change to those contracts. The new chair, Harvey C. Jones, said the board expects "operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption", according to the press release. But lenders price the guarantor as well as the contract. "Nvidia's credit support is what makes much of this debt finance-able across the AI hyperscaler deal front," said Christopher Brown of Synovus Securities, according to Reuters.
What did the AI cloud sell-off say about tenant credit?
Nvidia's shares sank 13% at the open (09:37 EST), according to the Yahoo Finance live blog. At the close on 12 November they were down 4.3% on Wednesday's close, at $166.19 (Yahoo Finance, NVDA); NBC News also put the fall at 4.3%. The AI clouds, or neoclouds, which rent out computing on Nvidia chips, fell more sharply than Nvidia at the close.
At the close on 12 November, Nebius was down 16.8% (Yahoo Finance, NBIS), CoreWeave 6.9% (CRWV) and IREN 6.5% (IREN) against Wednesday's close; NBC News put the falls at 17% for Nebius and 7% for CoreWeave. Nebius also reported its own third-quarter results that day (Nebius), so part of its fall is its own. It now expects 2026 revenue at the low end of its $3.0bn to $3.4bn range (shareholder letter).
GPU cloud shares fell hardest while Nvidia's chip rivals rose (% change at the close on 12 November, against the 11 November close)
Nvidia's standards for backing a partner had already become more stringent in recent months, CNBC reports. Adil Malik is a partner at Origin Partners, a digital infrastructure M&A advisory firm. Around three months ago, he says, he noticed Nvidia asking for more before it would support a backstop for his clients. A non-binding letter of intent from an offtaker "is usually not good enough", he says, according to CNBC.
In our view, landlords and lenders should map, deal by deal, where Nvidia sits, because the sell-off priced four different credits as one:
- Nvidia as the tenant;
- Nvidia as the guarantor of a tenant;
- Nvidia as the buyer of a tenant's cloud capacity;
- Nvidia only as the maker of the tenant's chips.
Who is building Europe's AI factories?
Nvidia says it is committing nearly $10bn to the technology ecosystem across Europe, a figure it gave at its Berlin keynote on 21 October (NVIDIA). Europe has only about 5% of the world's AI computing capacity, against 75% in the US, AP reported the same day.
The public programme moves at the pace of budgets. The EuroHPC Joint Undertaking opened a call on 30 July for up to seven AI gigafactories, expecting more than €20bn of private investment across the EU. The Commission has signed letters of intent with AMD, Nvidia and Qualcomm (EU Digital Skills and Jobs Platform, eWeek).
On 5 November EuroHPC moved the Lot 1 deadline to 4 February 2027 at 17:00 CET, to give member states time for their national budget procedures. The Lot 2 deadline stays at 3 December 2026, 17:00 CET.
Private projects are already progressing. Nebius is building a campus of up to 310 MW at Lappeenranta in Finland and one of 240 MW near Lille in France. Both are AI factories that will serve customers on Nvidia's Blackwell and Vera Rubin platforms (Nebius). Lappeenranta is due to deploy capacity in 2027, its shareholder letter says. In our view both depend more on chip supply and power than on any one executive.
Where is Europe's real bottleneck?
In the grid. On 9 November Norway's grid operator Statnett paused further reservations of grid capacity for data centres, a pause it expects to lift by 1 August 2027 at the latest (CMS). Norway has 800 MW of data centres connected, 4,200 MW with reserved capacity, 9,100 MW in the queue and requests for a further 18,000 MW. Together that is more than national peak demand of just over 25,000 MW (Statnett). These connected, reserved, queued and requested figures do not all represent contracted operational load.
Even the fastest kit waits for the site. Nvidia says its DSX POD can shrink onsite deployment "from six months to just 14 days once site utilities are ready" (NVIDIA). Greenfield sites have risen from 8% to 39% of the EMEA pipeline for 2026 to 2028, according to JLL. The hyperscale sites within it average 175 km from a hub city, up from 46 km (JLL). Prime powered land in the FLAP-D hubs (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris and Dublin) now costs €2.26m per MW, up 82% since 2021 (JLL).
Who in real estate is exposed to the AI capex cycle?
Owners of powered land in the main hubs have seen its price climb, per JLL. Developers such as SB Energy, which is building the land, power and shell in Ohio, sit on the other side of Nvidia's guarantees (10-Q). Operators carry the build: Nebius has more than 4 GW of power contracted worldwide and expects 2026 capital spending of about $27bn, above its $20bn to $25bn range (shareholder letter).
Not everyone sees a break. "The $3 trillion to $4 trillion of AI capex is not changing," Dan Ives, senior managing director at Yorkville Ives, wrote in a note to clients, according to Yahoo Finance.
Can a multi-vendor rack change the building?
At the close on 12 November, AMD was up 5.9% (Yahoo Finance, AMD) and Broadcom 5.5% (AVGO) against Wednesday's close. AMD said on 3 November that Anthropic, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure are running models and workloads on its first Helios rack-scale systems (AMD).
Daniel Newman, chief executive of the Futurum Group, cautioned that "AMD can't just instantly ramp up massive additional volume even if customers look to move its way", CNBC reported. Our view: power and cooling designed for more than one vendor's rack can keep a hall lettable to a wider pool of tenants, whichever chipmaker leads.
What should property boards watch on 17 November?
Nvidia's board put its finance chief in charge while she keeps the CFO role, and named its first-ever chair, the press release shows. Jones has served on the board since 1993 (8-K). For property boards, the lesson in our view is to name the stand-in before the crisis.
Nvidia reports third-quarter results on Tuesday 17 November at about 1:20 p.m. PT (22:20 CET), with the earnings call at 2 p.m. PT (23:00 CET) (press release). Three things to watch on the call: any change to the lease and capacity commitments, to the standards for supporting AI clouds, and to chip supply for Europe.
The guarantees were signed before Huang left; Europe's gigafactory tenders close after
Tap a date to read more.
30 July 2026The EU opens its AI gigafactories call
The EuroHPC Joint Undertaking opens a call for up to seven AI gigafactories, expecting more than €20bn of private investment across the EU.
17 August 2026Nvidia guarantees an Ohio campus leased to OpenAI
Nvidia signs guarantees with SB Energy on leases for about 4.25 GW of IT load in Pike County, Ohio, where an OpenAI affiliate is the tenant. Its payments are capped at $105bn.
26 August 2026The 10-Q puts the commitments in writing
For the quarter to 26 July, Nvidia lists $56bn of additional commitments: $36bn of AI cloud agreements and $20bn of data centre leases not yet commenced for third parties. Its guarantees carry a maximum gross exposure of $108.5bn.
5 November 2026Lot 1 deadline moved, Lot 2 unchanged
EuroHPC moves the Lot 1 tender deadline to 4 February 2027 so Member States can complete their national budget procedures. The Lot 2 deadline stays at 3 December 2026.
11 November 2026The board accepts Huang's resignation
Nvidia's board accepts Jensen Huang's resignation as president, chief executive and director, effective immediately, names finance chief Colette Kress interim chief executive and appoints Harvey C. Jones chair.
12 November 2026Nvidia announces the change
Nvidia announces that Kress stays CFO while serving as interim chief executive and that Jones is the board's first-ever chair. Jones said the board expects "operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption".
17 November 2026Third-quarter results
Nvidia reports at about 1:20 p.m. PT (22:20 CET), with the earnings call at 2 p.m. PT (23:00 CET).
3 December 2026Lot 2 tender deadline
Tenders for Lot 2 of the gigafactories call close at 17:00 CET.
4 February 2027Lot 1 tender deadline
Tenders for Lot 1 close at 17:00 CET, after the extension.
Why it matters
Our view: the first test is the 17 November call. If Nvidia confirms that its $36bn of AI cloud agreements, $20bn of leases not yet started and guarantees of up to $108.5bn stand unchanged, then Thursday reads as a governance shock. Data centre credit would then be repriced over months, on each tenant's own strength. If Nvidia tightens its support, then projects resting on a letter of intent, which, according to Adil Malik, "is usually not good enough", will meet lenders asking for more equity.
In Europe, in our view, if the gigafactory deadlines hold at 3 December and 4 February, then grids, more than any chief executive, will set the pipeline's pace. In Norway, data centre capacity connected, reserved, queued and requested already exceeds national peak demand.
FAQ
What is the difference between Nvidia's commitments and its guarantees?
They differ in when Nvidia pays, according to its 10-Q:
- Commitments: amounts Nvidia has agreed to pay, $36bn of AI cloud agreements and $20bn of data centre leases it expects to reassign.
- Guarantees: paid only if a tenant defaults; the $108.5bn is a maximum gross exposure, not an expected loss.
What is an AI cloud?
In Nvidia's filing, AI clouds are cloud providers that buy its data centre infrastructure products. Nvidia commits to cloud service agreements with them, which the AI clouds can stop providing to Nvidia and sell to third-party customers instead (Nvidia 10-Q).
What does the Ohio guarantee cover?
Defined portions of the lease and power payments on about 4.25 GW of capacity in Pike County, Ohio, not the full cost of the site. The guarantees are capped at $105bn and take effect as each lease starts (Nvidia 10-Q). OpenAI has agreed to reimburse Nvidia for any amounts it pays (Nvidia 8-K).
Who runs Nvidia now?
Colette Kress is interim chief executive until a permanent successor is named, and she remains chief financial officer in the meantime. Harvey C. Jones is the board's first-ever chair. Third-quarter results are due on 17 November, as previously scheduled (press release).
Would you lend against a data centre whose strongest credit is a guarantee from its tenant's chip supplier?
Sources (22)
- Nvidia, Form 8-K, Item 5.02, 12 November 2026
- Nvidia, press release on the CEO transition (Exhibit 99.1), 12 November 2026
- Nvidia, Form 10-Q, quarter ended 26 July 2026, filed 26 August 2026
- Nvidia, Form 8-K on the SB Energy guarantees, 17 August 2026
- Reuters via MarketScreener, Investors worry the AI trade needs Nvidia's Huang and its largesse, 12 November 2026
- CNBC, Nvidia live updates, 12 November 2026
- Yahoo Finance, Nvidia live updates, 12 November 2026
- NBC News, Nvidia stock falls after Huang resigns, weighing on broader market, 12 November 2026
- Yahoo Finance quote data, at the close on 12 November 2026: NVDA, NBIS, CRWV, IREN, AMD, AVGO
- Nebius, third-quarter 2026 results, 12 November 2026
- Nebius, letter to shareholders, third quarter 2026, 12 November 2026
- Nebius, 310 MW AI factory in Finland, 31 March 2026
- AMD, third-quarter 2026 results (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1), 3 November 2026
- NVIDIA Blog, GTC Berlin 2026 keynote, 21 October 2026
- AP via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Nvidia CEO encourages Europe's lagging AI sector, 21 October 2026
- EuroHPC JU, AI Gigafactories call launched, 30 July 2026
- EuroHPC JU, AI Gigafactory call for tenders, updated 5 November 2026
- EU Digital Skills and Jobs Platform, EU AI gigafactories call, updated 4 September 2026
- eWeek, EU AI gigafactories, 31 July 2026
- Statnett, temporary measures for secure system operation, 9 November 2026
- CMS, Statnett halts new grid reservations for data centres, 9 November 2026
- JLL, EMEA data centre mid-year 2026 report, 3 August 2026
