OpenAI is in talks to raise at least $30 billion in a pre-IPO funding round at a pre-money valuation of roughly $1.4 trillion, according to Bloomberg1,2. The round is structured as a bridge to provide capital in place of an IPO rather than a final private raise before going public.
The fundraising discussions come after OpenAI raised $122 billion in March at an $852 billion valuation, a round that was described at the time as its last private raise before a public offering. CEO Sam Altman has since ruled out a public debut in 2026, citing AI safety as the priority. "I think it is unacceptable to be taking like a 10% chance of killing everybody by the end of the decade," Altman told Fortune, responding to warnings from safety researchers about existential risk.
Investor appetite for the new round is reportedly driven by a sharp uptick in OpenAI's financials. A strategic refocus on areas including coding fueled a 70% jump in run-rate revenue since July, reaching $40 billion in August, according to Bloomberg's reporting. That growth followed a period earlier in the year when Anthropic had momentarily outpaced OpenAI.
ANALYSIS The $1.4 trillion target would mark a substantial increase over the $852 billion valuation set in March, reflecting the revenue trajectory described in the reporting.
The timing is notable given Anthropic's own capital-markets activity. Anthropic's IPO prospectus, recently reviewed by Reuters, projects a public offering that could value the company at more than $2 trillion[2]. Both companies have framed existential AI risk as a live concern even as they pursue historically large capital raises[2].
ANALYSIS The two largest independent AI labs are now pursuing valuations in the trillions, with each citing safety obligations as a reason to control the pace of their public-market entries.
OpenAI did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment.