OpenAI Eyes Valuation of More Than $1.2 Trillion, Surging 40% in Just Six Months

【Financial News New York = Correspondent Lee Byung-chul】OpenAI is pursuing new investment aimed at achieving a valuation of more than $1.2 trillion. That would represent an increase of more than 40% from its $852 billion valuation in March in just six months. With users and revenue growing rapidly following the launch of its latest artificial intelligence (AI) models, the move is seen as an effort to secure another large round of funding in private markets rather than rush toward an initial public offering (IPO).
According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and Financial Times (FT) on the 16th local time, OpenAI has recently discussed a new funding plan with major investors based on a valuation of more than $1.2 trillion. The negotiations are still at an early stage, and the specific valuation and investment amount may change.
In March, OpenAI raised $122 billion from Amazon, NVIDIA, and SoftBank, among others, and received a valuation of $852 billion, including the new investment. If it secures a $1.2 trillion valuation this time, its value will have risen by about 41% in just six months.
The recent growth of its AI products is behind the surge in OpenAI’s valuation.
OpenAI released GPT-5.6 in July, followed by a new AI model called Astra earlier this month. According to the FT, revenue rose 20% after the launch of GPT-5.6, pushing annualized revenue above $40 billion as of last month.
OpenAI’s second-quarter revenue was $6.7 billion, up from $5.7 billion in the first quarter. Its active user base has surpassed 1 billion, and more than 200 million companies use OpenAI’s AI models. Its AI coding tool, Codex, is also growing rapidly.
OpenAI is engaged in an intense battle with rival Anthropic for AI leadership. Competition has intensified further with the rapid emergence of relatively inexpensive Chinese open-weight AI models.
According to the FT, Anthropic previously received a post-money valuation of $965 billion after an investment, briefly overtaking OpenAI. Anthropic is expected to post a profit for a second consecutive quarter on an adjusted basis, and it may pursue an IPO as early as October.
Another reason OpenAI is seeking funding again is the enormous cost of AI development.
OpenAI spent $34 billion last year alone. Its business requires massive amounts of capital to train large-scale AI models and secure data centers and computing infrastructure. A source told the FT that OpenAI "needs capital."
Although revenue is rising rapidly, profitability has yet to catch up. According to the WSJ, OpenAI’s operating margin fell in the second quarter, further delaying the timing of a return to profitability.
Initially, market attention focused on when OpenAI would go public. OpenAI confidentially filed an IPO prospectus in June but later postponed the listing. Sam Altman, OpenAI’s chief executive officer (CEO), recently effectively ruled out an IPO this year, citing controversy surrounding AI safety.
Altman said, "Considering everything happening around the safety issue, now is not a wise time to go public," adding, "We do not feel pressure to go public."
The latest discussions on additional investment were reportedly initiated by investors rather than OpenAI. If the new funding round is completed, existing investors such as SoftBank and Thrive Capital will have an opportunity to acquire additional stakes in OpenAI.
However, the later the IPO is delayed, the further investors’ exit timelines will be pushed back. Whether OpenAI can secure a valuation of more than $1.2 trillion and raise another large round of funding is expected to serve as a test of the company’s eventual IPO valuation and the broader competition among global AI companies for higher valuations.




[email protected] Correspondent Lee Byung-chul Reporter