OpenAI is bringing its AI models and Codex coding tools to Google Cloud , expanding its reach to customers of all three major U.S. cloud providers — including companies that are also among its fiercest AI rivals.

Why it matters: The move underscores a growing recognition that winning the enterprise AI race isn't just about building the smartest models. It's also about making those models available wherever businesses already run their software and store their data.

For OpenAI, the agreement offers another way to reach corporate customers without requiring them to establish a separate relationship with the ChatGPT-maker.

For Google, it means selling a competitor's AI models alongside its own Gemini offerings, potentially capturing business that might otherwise go to rival cloud providers.

Driving the news: Under the agreement announced Wednesday, Google Cloud customers will be able to purchase OpenAI's frontier models through Google's "Model Garden and Marketplace," including by using existing cloud…