OpenAI Aims for a $1.64 Trillion Valuation... Enters Private Investment Negotiations

[Financial News] OpenAI, a leader in the artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor and services market, has entered into negotiations for a large-scale private funding round to raise its corporate value to a whopping $1.2 trillion (approximately 1,640 trillion won).
According to major foreign media outlets, including the Financial Times (FT), on the 15th (local time), OpenAI is currently in initial discussions with major investors regarding new funding. This move comes just a few months after the company raised $122 billion in investment last March, valuing it at $852 billion. Prior to this, in February of this year, the company conducted a round worth $110 billion, with SoftBank Group Corp. and NVIDIA Corporation investing $30 billion each, and Amazon.com, Inc. investing $50 billion.
Behind OpenAI's phenomenal growth lies its overwhelming performance. Following the launch of its latest model, 'GPT-5.6', revenue surged by 20%, and annualized revenue recently surpassed $40 billion (approximately 55 trillion won).
Despite explosive revenue growth, the "money-eating monster" structure resulting from competition in AI technology persists. Last year, OpenAI consumed massive amounts of cash, spending approximately $34 billion solely on building large-scale data centers and securing computing power. With the battle for dominance intensifying with competitor Anthropic, the company is in a situation where it cannot afford to delay infrastructure investment.
The initial public offering (IPO) schedule is expected to be delayed longer than anticipated. OpenAI applied for a preliminary listing review privately earlier this year, but CEO Sam Altman drew a line, stating, "There will be no listing within 2026," citing concerns regarding AI safety. Currently, management and investors are forecasting the listing for 2027. Both OpenAI and Anthropic are calling for government-level regulations and the introduction of robust safeguards to address concerns regarding AI misuse and security.
The market is paying attention to OpenAI's strategy of sticking to private rounds rather than listing on the stock market immediately. Maintaining a private status allows the company to continuously raise large amounts of capital from private investors prior to an IPO. Foreign media reported that this is interpreted as a strategy to enter Wall Street after establishing strong AI safety standards without being under pressure for short-term performance, while covering the costs of expanding AI data centers and R&D, which require massive capital.

[email protected] Yoon Jae-jun Reporter