OpenAI Seeks $30 Billion in Funding at Potential $1.4 Trillion Valuation, Reuters Reports
OpenAI (NASDAQ:OAI) is seeking about $30 billion in new funding. The company wants investors to commit money before its rival Anthropic (NASDAQ:ANTP) is expected to go public in mid-November, according to a Reuters report published on Monday.
Reuters cited people who know about the matter and reported that the fundraising could value the company behind ChatGPT at more than $1.4 trillion.
OpenAI is reportedly talking to investors who already support it, including Japan's SoftBank Group (TYO:9984) and MGX, an investment firm based in Abu Dhabi. It is also seeking more money from government-owned investment funds and other large institutional investors.
According to the report, OpenAI is telling investors that its revenue, measured at an annual rate, is $50 billion. The company expects this figure to reach $70 billion by the end of the year after it introduced its GPT-6 Astra model.
The fundraising talks are happening before Anthropic is expected to launch its initial public offering (IPO) in mid-November. Going public could give investors more financial information to help them compare the two artificial intelligence companies.
Reuters reported that Anthropic's quarterly revenue rose from $11.6 billion in the second quarter to $16.8 billion in the third quarter. The report also said that its monthly revenue growth has slowed, raising questions about how much the company is worth.
According to Reuters, OpenAI was valued at $852 billion in March after raising $122 billion. A possible valuation of more than $1.4 trillion would be a significant increase from that earlier funding deal.
Both companies are seeking more money as spending on AI infrastructure continues. This includes paying for computing power and data centres.
The reported fundraising talks are taking place while technology stock prices are moving up and down, bond yields are higher, and investors are paying more attention to borrowing used to build AI infrastructure.
The proposed $30 billion fundraising and the possible valuation have not been finalized. The timing and final terms of any investment deals depend on how the reported discussions turn out.