According to informed sources, OpenAI is engaged in preliminary discussions with banks regarding the possibility of an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the fourth quarter of this year. The ChatGPT developer, valued at $500 billion, is also expanding its finance team, having hired Ajmere Dale as its new accounting head and Cynthia Gaylor as Finance Lead for Investor Relations.
This report emerges amid intensifying competition in the artificial intelligence sector, with OpenAI's rival Anthropic projected to achieve breakeven for the first time in 2028—two years earlier than OpenAI. OpenAI executives have privately voiced concerns that Anthropic might beat them to the public markets.
Anthropic, the developer of the Claude AI assistant, is currently preparing for its own IPO this year. The company has recruited several finance professionals, including Andrew Zloto, who is responsible for capital markets, and Kevin Chang, an investor from Blackstone.
Both AI startups are actively pursuing new funding rounds. OpenAI is seeking to raise over $100 billion, a round that could value the company at approximately $830 billion. SoftBank plans to commit an additional $30 billion, while Amazon (AMZN.US) has expressed interest in investing $50 billion.
According to reports this week, Anthropic has completed its latest funding round, achieving a valuation of $350 billion and raising between $10 billion and $15 billion. Sources indicate the total raised could increase further if Microsoft (MSFT.US) and NVIDIA (NVDA.US) also participate in the investment.
