March 24 (Reuters) - OpenAI's Chief Operating Officer

Brad Lightcap will spearhead global expansion and corporate

partnerships, CEO Sam Altman said on Monday, as the

Microsoft ( MSFT )-backed startup seeks to cement its dominance

in the rapidly growing AI industry.

Altman will increasingly focus on the technical side to

boost the ChatGPT-maker's research and product initiatives,

while remaining in charge of things, OpenAI said.

The company is partnering with SoftBank Group and

Oracle to establish a network of data centers under the

$500-billion Stargate project, aimed at powering artificial

intelligence workloads.

"Brad will lead our global deployment, focusing on business

strategy, key partnerships, infrastructure, and operational

excellence to maximize the impact of our research," Altman said.

Lightcap, who previously worked with Altman at venture

capital firm Y Combinator, joined OpenAI in 2018.

OpenAI has also expanded the role of Chief Research Officer

Mark Chen, who will integrate research and product development,

the startup's co-founder said in a blog post.

Altman said in February that OpenAI would simplify its

products, a sign the startup was willing to make changes to

attract new investments amid growing investor scrutiny around

massive artificial-intelligence spending.

San Francisco-based OpenAI, which is in the process of

raising $40 billion, is seeking to

transition into a for-profit

entity, which it says is

required to secure the capital

needed to develop the best AI models.

The company

closed a $6.6 billion

funding round in October.