OpenAI has held early talks with major investors about a funding round that could value the company at roughly $1.2 trillion before an eventual IPO, according to reporting by Reuters citing the Financial Times on September 15. That valuation would place the company approximately 41% above its $852 billion post-money valuation from its March funding round.
The negotiations remain at an initial stage, and valuations could change. Notably, investors approached OpenAI to initiate these discussions rather than the other way around. When contacted for comment, OpenAI declined to respond.
Recent Funding History and Revenue
OpenAI's March funding round generated $122 billion in committed capital from investors including Amazon, NVIDIA, SoftBank, and Microsoft. The company reported monthly revenue of $2 billion at that time, with enterprise customers accounting for over 40% of revenue.
The proposed $1.2 trillion valuation would represent a 41% increase in less than six months.
Broader AI Investment Landscape
OpenAI and other frontier AI companies have reached mega-cap status at unprecedented speed. According to Forge Global, xAI achieved a valuation exceeding $100 billion in 2.3 years, while Anthropic took approximately 4.5 years to reach that milestone. This compares to roughly 16 years for companies established before 2011.
Goldman Sachs Research forecasts global AI investments will exceed $1 trillion by 2026, with $581 billion projected for the United States alone. Gartner expects global expenditure on AI platforms and models to reach $64.25 billion, representing a 63.4% increase compared to 2025.
IPO Timing and Regulatory Considerations
On September 12, CEO Sam Altman stated that OpenAI would not pursue an IPO in 2026 due to concerns over frontier AI safety. OpenAI and Anthropic have both endorsed stronger regulations on more powerful AI systems.
Industry analysts suggest that for companies already valued above $100 billion, future value creation may increasingly occur while they remain private, making IPOs primarily liquidity events for existing investors rather than catalysts for major valuation growth.
