- OpenAI is racing to raise about $30B at a valuation above $1.4T, Reuters reports.
- SoftBank and MGX are in talks to join, and Anthropic’s IPO is expected in mid-November.
- At $1.4T, OpenAI would be valued at about 28 times its reported $50B annualised revenue.
In the week Anthropic hosted its October 14 investor day, OpenAI was holding its own meetings with long-only funds and sovereign wealth funds, the same pool of money its rival is courting for a public listing. The ChatGPT maker is now trying to secure about $30 billion at a valuation above $1.4 trillion, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
SoftBank Group and Abu Dhabi’s MGX, both existing backers, are in talks to join the round, one of the sources said. OpenAI and SoftBank declined to comment. Anthropic and MGX did not immediately respond.
As Tech Funding News previously reported,UAE funds have discussed investing up to $10 billion between them, with BlackRock and the University of California’s endowment also in talks. OpenAI is presenting $1.4 trillion to investors as a fixed pre-money price, even though it has not settled on a lead investor.
Why OpenAI wants to price before Anthropic lists
Reuters’ sources say the two labs are tapping a similar investor base. Funds would have to weigh two trillion-dollar offerings within days or weeks of each other, and some read OpenAI’s push as an attempt to lock up money that might otherwise go to Anthropic.
There is a balance-sheet reason too. Investors familiar with OpenAI told Reuters it needs cash for its infrastructure commitments, and a cushion if weaker IPO markets delay its planned 2027 listing.
The round would come less than seven months after the $122 billion March raise at $852 billion, anchored by Amazon, Nvidia, and SoftBank. $1.4 trillion would be about 64% higher. TFN reported on September 16 that OpenAI wasexploring $1.2 trillion, then that it was eyeing $30 billion at $1.4 trillion as bridge financing.
Can a $1.4T price hold while AI stocks wobble?
The raise lands in a rough market. Companies in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index have lost more than $1.6 trillion in market value in less than two weeks, according to Reuters. Investors are also questioning the debt behind AI data centres: CoreWeave, with roughly $50 billion in debt, saw its shares and bonds tumble. AirTrunk REIT, Firmus, and SoftBank-backed SB Energy have pulled or paused listings, and bankers say several companies are waiting until after Anthropic lists.
The open question is whether investors will commit at $1.4 trillion without seeing those books. Once Anthropic’s numbers are public, both companies will be priced against them.
