Why OpenAI Lowered Its Price Tag Weeks Before Anthropic Goes Public
OpenAI has lowered its target value for its latest fundraising round to $1.25 trillion, according to the Financial Times. That is less than the $1.4 trillion figure investors were told earlier this month.
Even at the lower figure, OpenAI would be worth almost 50% more than its $852 billion valuation in March. Investors have until October 30 to decide whether to put money into the company.
Why Were Investors Less Excited About OpenAI's $1.4 Trillion Valuation?
Morgan Stanley and technology investment fund Dragoneer offered the investment opportunity to Morgan Stanley's wealthy private clients. They presented a $1.4 trillion valuation before adding new investment money, according to documents seen by the FT.
Several people familiar with the fundraising process said fewer investors were interested than in OpenAI's earlier fundraising rounds.
“There has been zero clamouring. All the prior times [OpenAI] have been on there’s been a frenzy. This time is a bit of a thud,” said someone who knew about the deal.
Some of these people said investors also felt overwhelmed after putting money into earlier fundraising rounds. OpenAI raised $40 billion in March 2025 and a record $122 billion in March 2026.
One person told the FT that investment firm Coatue and funds from the United Arab Emirates are discussing whether to lead the new fundraising round. CNBC, which reported the $1.25 trillion figure on Thursday, said this was OpenAI's value before receiving the new investment money. That makes the new target about $150 billion lower than the earlier figure.
Why Are Some Investors Waiting to See What Happens With Anthropic?
Other investors gave the FT another reason for waiting. They want to see how much Anthropic is valued at when it first sells shares to the public, which is expected in mid-November, before deciding whether to invest in OpenAI. This first public sale of shares is called an initial public offering, or IPO.
Anthropic's expected value has also fallen. Some investors discussed valuing the company at $1.5 trillion for its IPO. That is lower than the $2 trillion Anthropic had previously wanted, after its growth slowed during the third quarter of the year.
Based on these reported figures, the difference between the values of the two AI companies has grown to about $250 billion. Earlier this week, the difference was around $100 billion.
OpenAI wants to raise $30 billion to help pay for its operations until it can sell shares to the public. Its IPO will probably happen in the first half of 2027. Last month, CEO Sam Altman said OpenAI would not hold an IPO in 2026 because of safety concerns.
Why Is the Rest of the Stock Market Paying Attention to Both Companies?
OpenAI lowered its target value at a time when US technology stocks have been falling. Investors are worried about AI companies spending large amounts of borrowed money. Chip companies lost a total of $2 trillion in stock market value over eight trading sessions this month.
Jimmy Chang of the Rockefeller Global Family Office said uncertainty about both companies' IPOs is putting pressure on US stocks. His office has investments connected to both OpenAI and Anthropic.
“The market needs to see a successful IPO. These companies need funding,” Chang added.
OpenAI might raise less than $30 billion if investors are not interested enough. The October 30 deadline will help show how many investors are willing to put money into OpenAI at a $1.25 trillion valuation, before Anthropic announces the price of its shares for the public.