Nvidia said it plans to deploy $18 billion in equity investments over the remaining period of its current fiscal year.

Business Insider reported on Aug. 26 that Nvidia is increasing investment commitments focused on AI model developers, infrastructure financing firms and other private companies.

The plan shows Nvidia reaching beyond being a chip supplier into the broader AI ecosystem. Nvidia disclosed in an earnings report on Aug. 26 that it has $18 billion in equity investment commitments for the remainder of its fiscal year. As of late July, assets tied to private companies stood at $47.9 billion, more than doubling from $22.3 billion at the end of the prior fiscal year.

Nvidia has recently put more emphasis on equity investments and partnerships than on mergers and acquisitions. Luke Lango, chief technology analyst at investment outlet InvestorPlace, said securing technology licences, hiring talent and taking minority stakes helps reduce the regulatory scrutiny and integration burden that comes with acquisitions.

In August, Nvidia also unveiled investments aimed at shortages of land and power for data centres. Nvidia invested $1.5 billion in SB Energy and also acquired a stake in Cloverleaf Infrastructure. The two companies address issues related to securing power and land for data centres.

It also broadened its steps in financing. Nvidia joined Wall Street financial firms in efforts to raise more than $500 billion in external funding for AI infrastructure. Separately, it signed a contract worth several billion dollars with coding startup Poolside, and it was reported to be reviewing an investment or deal involving AI search startup Perplexity and South Korea's inference chip startup Rebellion.

Previously announced deals have also moved into the execution stage. Nvidia disclosed on Aug. 26 that it paid $2.94 billion in cash in connection with a deal with AI hardware startup Groq announced in December.

Risk factors are also being raised over such aggressive investment. As Amazon, Google and Microsoft, Nvidia's key customers, expand development of their own chips, Nvidia is moving more deeply into infrastructure, software and models. Lango pointed out that Nvidia is now supplying chips to the same companies while also funding them and participating as a shareholder, and that if demand slows, revenue and the value of its stakes could be hit at the same time.

Nvidia directly rebutted those concerns. Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress said at an earnings event, referring to some criticism of circular financing, "We see it differently." She said these investments would be "very strong" based on the intensity of demand, the business created for Nvidia, the ecosystem built on the Nvidia platform and the equity returns on invested capital, and that its risk is limited.

Nvidia's recent expansion of investment shows that the battle for leadership in the AI market is shifting beyond chip performance to power, land, financing, software and model developers. That makes which companies Nvidia will fund over the remainder of its fiscal year, and whether expanded investment leads to defending revenue and taking control of the ecosystem, the next key points to watch.