SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -ChatGPT maker OpenAI said on Thursday that it is evaluating U.S. states as potential artificial intelligence data center locations for its massive Stargate venture, framing the project as a matter of urgency for the United States to beat China in the global AI race.

ChatGPT creator OpenAI, Softbank and Oracle, along with other equity backers of Stargate, have committed $100 billion for immediate deployment, with the remaining investment expected over the next four years, according to the White House. The first of Stargate’s data centers are already under construction in Abilene, Texas.

Group Corp., and Oracle Corp (NYSE:ORCL). is nearing the final stages of selecting additional locations in Texas for data center campuses, according to Bloomberg News. The move is part of a wider plan by the companies to invest heavily in AI infrastructure.