OpenAI weighs funding round at $1.2tn valuation before IPO

OpenAI has held early conversations with investors about raising another private funding round at a $1.2tn valuation before its planned IPO, as it seeks to capitalise on the success of its latest AI model.

The ChatGPT maker, which in March raised $122bn at an $852bn valuation, including the new money, has recently held discussions with large backers about a fresh capital raise that would increase its value to about $1.2tn, according to people familiar with the matter.

The conversations with investors are at an early stage and the figure could change over the coming months, the people added.

Whether to go ahead with the private round, and its timing, would depend on when OpenAI opts to go public, according to one of the people, who added that the conversations had been initiated by investors rather than the company.

Chief executive Sam Altman on Saturday said a listing is unlikely to come before 2027. He has said it would be an “ill-advised moment” to go public amid rising concerns about the existential risks posed by AI.

Altman’s company is looking to capitalise on renewed demand for its products following the release of its latest models, GPT-5.6 in July and Astra earlier this month.

Those models have boosted the company’s revenue growth after a relatively slow start to the year, during which rival Anthropic leapfrogged OpenAI to a $965bn post-money valuation and investors questioned OpenAI’s direction and price tag.

The ChatGPT maker confidentially filed its IPO prospectus in June but has since pushed out the timing of its listing. A further private funding round would give longtime backers, such as SoftBank and Thrive Capital, a chance to increase their exposure to the company but will probably extend their wait for the big payouts they are expecting from an IPO.

OpenAI “needs capital,” one of the people said, referencing the billions of dollars the company has burned through in recent years to train its models. The start-up, which spent $34bn last year, insists it has ample resources after the March fundraising.

The group’s annualised revenue passed $40bn last month after a 20 per cent leap following the launch of GPT-5.6, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Anthropic is on track to be profitable for the second quarter in a row, on an adjusted basis, the FT reported last week. It is expected to go public as soon as October at a valuation of around $2tn.

OpenAI declined to comment.