OpenAI in talks to secure $30 billion at $1.4 trillion valuation

OpenAI is reportedly negotiating with investors to secure at least $30 billion in a pre-IPO round that would value the company at roughly $1.4 trillion, according to reporting from Bloomberg.

Backers are keen to increase their exposure to the ChatGPT developer before it makes the transition to public markets. The company has recently regained momentum after being briefly overtaken by rival Anthropic earlier in the year—a resurgence tied to renewed emphasis on capabilities like code generation, which has driven a 70% spike in revenue run-rate since mid-year to approximately $40 billion as of August.

Recent fundraising timeline#

OpenAI closed its previous major round in March with $122 billion raised at an $852 billion valuation. That financing was initially positioned as the final private capital raise before going public, with an expected IPO during 2026. The landscape has shifted considerably, however, with leadership now signaling a different timeline.

Prioritizing safety over speed to IPO#

CEO Sam Altman has publicly postponed the public debut beyond this year, citing the need to advance AI safety work first. "I think it is unacceptable to be taking like a 10% chance of killing everybody by the end of the decade," he said in comments to Fortune, responding to ongoing concerns from researchers about potential existential risks posed by advanced AI systems.

If finalized, this new round would function as a bridge to eventually reach the public markets, Bloomberg indicated. The company has not publicly confirmed these discussions.