Accel leads talks for Thinking Machines' $1B raise at $40B valuation

Thinking Machines, the artificial intelligence research lab co-founded by Mira Murati following her departure from OpenAI, is negotiating a fresh funding round worth approximately $1 billion that would value the company at no less than $40 billion, according to reporting from The Information Thursday. Accel, which already holds a stake in the company, is reportedly working to lead this investment.

If completed, the new round would place the startup below the $50 billion price it attempted to command in fundraising efforts late in the prior year.

Revenue and valuation metrics#

The company's annualized revenue currently exceeds $100 million, according to someone with access to its financial data. At that revenue level, the proposed $40 billion valuation suggests an unusually elevated revenue multiple—a metric that typically reflects investor conviction around long-term growth potential.

From flagship product to departures#

Thinking Machines unveiled Inkling in July, an open-weight model designed to generate revenue through usage-based compute fees. Users pay for the ability to adapt models using their own proprietary data through the company's Tinker platform.

The startup's previous round of funding—a $2 billion investment that ranks among the largest seed-stage financings ever completed—valued it at $12 billion. Andreessen Horowitz anchored that round, with participation from Nvidia, GV, Lightspeed, and Conviction Partners. Backers were primarily motivated by Murati's leadership credentials and the presence of other researchers who had previously worked at OpenAI.

The company has since experienced several notable departures. Co-founders including Lilian Weng and Luke Metz have returned to OpenAI, signaling potential challenges in retaining its founding talent.

Neither Accel nor Thinking Machines provided immediate responses to requests for comment.