OpenAI has held preliminary discussions with major investors about a new funding round that could value the artificial intelligence company at approximately $1.2 trillion, according to Reuters.
The discussions remain at an early stage, and the proposed valuation could change. The investor outreach was reportedly initiated by potential backers rather than OpenAI, and the company has not confirmed that it will proceed with the financing.
A transaction at the reported valuation would represent a substantial increase from OpenAI’s previous funding round. The ChatGPT developer secured $122 billion in committed capital in March at an $852 billion valuation.
Reaching $1.2 trillion would therefore increase OpenAI’s valuation by approximately 41% within several months and place the company among the most valuable private enterprises ever created.
Investor interest has been supported by the adoption of OpenAI’s latest models and the company’s rapidly expanding revenue. The company is benefiting from demand for consumer subscriptions, enterprise software, developer access and AI infrastructure services.
However, that growth requires enormous amounts of capital. OpenAI must fund the computing infrastructure, data centers, chips, energy agreements, research programs and technical talent needed to train and operate increasingly capable models.
A new private round could give OpenAI more capital to finance those commitments while allowing the company to delay an initial public offering. CEO Sam Altman recently said OpenAI would not go public in 2026, citing concerns about the pace and safety implications of artificial intelligence development.
Remaining private could give management additional flexibility to make long-term investments without the quarterly earnings pressure associated with the public markets. But additional private financing would also raise expectations that OpenAI can eventually generate enough profit to justify a valuation exceeding $1 trillion.
The talks arrive as investors compare OpenAI with Anthropic and other frontier AI developers. Anthropic is also preparing for a potential public listing, increasing competition for institutional capital seeking direct exposure to major AI laboratories.
OpenAI’s valuation would depend on whether investors believe the company can maintain its technological leadership while converting widespread product adoption into durable, high-margin revenue.
The financing could also affect existing investors such as SoftBank, Amazon, Nvidia and Thrive Capital. A higher valuation would increase the stated value of their holdings, although any new round could include terms that differ from the headline valuation assigned to common equity.
If completed, the transaction would demonstrate that investor demand for the largest AI companies remains strong despite concerns about heavy spending, safety risks and uncertain long-term profitability. It would also give OpenAI additional financial resources for an increasingly expensive competition to build and commercialize advanced artificial intelligence.
