OpenAI eyes $30 billion private raise at $1.25 trillion valuation ahead of IPO

OpenAI is reportedly close to closing a new round of private financing that could bring in as much as $30 billion and place the company at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation. The funding effort, which sources told CNBC, is being led by Coatue and a group of investors based in the United Arab Emirates. The move signals that the ChatGPT maker may prefer another large private infusion over an immediate public listing.

The prospective round follows a Bloomberg report from a month earlier that described a similar $30 billion raise at a $1.4 trillion valuation. Both outlets note that the terms are still under negotiation, leaving room for the final figures to shift. In addition to capital, the UAE investors are expected to provide additional computing capacity for OpenAI, a resource that could help the lab sustain its rapid model development and deployment. OpenAI declined to comment on the negotiations.

If the $1.25 trillion figure holds, OpenAI would become the most valuable private company ever, surpassing the $1 trillion threshold that has long been a benchmark for tech giants. The valuation would also dwarf the $852 billion post-money figure that resulted from OpenAI’s March financing round. The company filed confidential paperwork for an initial public offering in June, and a higher private valuation would raise the bar for any future IPO pricing.

The potential raise also has implications for rival AI startup Anthropic, which is rumored to be preparing its own S-1 filing. Anthropic is said to be targeting a public valuation between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion, according to CNBC. The firm raised $65 billion at a $965 billion valuation in May, a round many believed would be its last before going public. Both companies filing confidential IPO paperwork in June suggests a competitive timeline for bringing AI leaders to the public markets.

For founders and investors, the OpenAI negotiations underscore the appetite for large-scale capital in the generative-AI space, even as companies weigh the trade-offs between private growth and public scrutiny. The outcome will likely influence how other AI startups structure their financing strategies and may set a new pricing reference for future IPOs. Stakeholders will be watching closely for the final terms of the raise and any accompanying agreements on compute resources, as these details will shape the competitive dynamics of the sector in the months ahead.