ChatGPT maker OpenAI has confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering (IPO), the company said on Monday, joining rival Anthropic in a race to the stock market as investors seek exposure to the artificial intelligence boom.
OpenAI did not disclose the size or terms of the offering and said a timeline for the listing has not yet been determined.
"It may be a while because there are things we want to do that are likely easier as a private company," the company said in a statement.
Reuters previously reported that the AI giant is targeting a valuation of up to $1 trillion in a stock market debut that could come as early as September.
At that valuation, OpenAI would pave the way for a trio of trillion-dollar companies to debut in quick succession, in what is widely seen as the most significant test of investor appetite for high-growth technology stocks in a decade.
Elon Musk's SpaceX was the first to move, filing for an IPO that would rank as the largest in history if completed. The company is pursuing a $75 billion offering at a $1.75 trillion valuation.
Anthropic, the company behind the popular coding assistant Claude Code, said on 1 June that it had confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering, weeks after raising $65 billion in a funding round that valued it at $965 billion.
"OpenAI is keeping options open as Anthropic edged ahead with its filing after a monster funding round," said Michael Ashley Schulman, a partner at Cerity Partners.
The IPOs of Anthropic and OpenAI would crystallise a transformative period for the technology industry and global markets, with artificial intelligence rapidly emerging as the defining investment theme of the decade.
OpenAI said earlier this year that it was raising $110 billion at an $840 billion valuation from a roster of heavyweight backers including SoftBank, Amazon and Nvidia.
At the time, it also disclosed that ChatGPT had more than 900 million weekly active users and more than 50 million consumer subscribers.
Microsoft's early investment, totalling $13 billion since 2019, helped pave the way for OpenAI's rapid rise and fuelled growth in Microsoft's Azure cloud computing business.
In March, OpenAI said it was generating $2 billion in monthly revenue and growing roughly four times faster than companies that defined the internet and mobile eras, including Alphabet and Meta. That compares with about $1 billion in quarterly revenue at the end of 2024.
OpenAI told investors during its most recent fundraising round that it did not expect to become profitable until 2030, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Yet the industry OpenAI helped create has quickly become crowded, and investors are increasingly scrutinising whether the sector's meteoric rise can be sustained.
Anthropic has emerged as one of its biggest rivals, with soaring demand for Claude among software developers seeking coding assistance. Some companies are also deploying its flagship Mythos model to identify vulnerabilities in their software.
While the blockbuster offerings could inject fresh momentum into the U.S. IPO market, some bankers warn they could also absorb capital that might otherwise flow into smaller deals.
"What OpenAI does not want is for the public market capital to exhaust itself," said Gil Luria, managing director at D.A. Davidson.
"Not only are SpaceX and Anthropic ahead of it in line to IPO, large public competitors could also raise tens of billions of dollars each in public market secondary issuances, as Google just completed last week."
Musk-led SpaceX is expected to go public this week.
OpenAI was founded in 2015 as a research-focused non-profit organisation, but created a for-profit arm four years later to help fund the soaring costs of developing artificial intelligence systems.
Its unusual structure, which gave the non-profit control over the for-profit entity, came under intense scrutiny in late 2023 when chief executive Sam Altman was briefly ousted before returning days later after employees revolted.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington has agreed to resume talks with Iran after Tehran requested further negotiations, but declared that last m...
What began as a fan-created chant just months ago has become one of the defining images of this year's FIFA World Cup, with Norway's "Viking Row" swee...
Russia’s fuel shortages are spreading into Central Asia, exposing the region’s heavy reliance on Russian petrol and diesel as governments race to ...
Humanoid robots stumbled, collided and recovered as they battled for the RoboCup 2026 football title on Sunday (5 July), showcasing the latest advances in robotics and artificial intelligence at the world's largest competition of its kind.
Passengers travelling through Tashkent International Airport can now receive customs guidance from an AI-powered robot, as Uzbekistan continues to expand the digitalisation of its border services.
China and several Central Asian countries have agreed to develop a joint satellite constellation to monitor natural disasters, track environmental change and improve regional disaster preparedness through shared remote-sensing data.
Major technology, telecom, aviation and crypto-related firms have pledged to strengthen cooperation to tackle the illegal wildlife trade according to statements made at a business forum convened by United for Wildlife during London Climate Action Week.
It has been a punishing week for large parts of China, and forecasters warn the worst may not be over. After Typhoon Maysak left a trail of destruction and at least 23 people dead, Super Typhoon Bavi is now threatening the country's eastern coast.
At least 12 people have been killed in forest fires in Almeria in southern Spain, Andalucía’s emergency agency has said, as firefighters continue efforts to put out the blaze.
The death toll from Venezuela's twin earthquakes has risen to 3,811, according to figures released by National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez on Wednesday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington has agreed to resume talks with Iran after Tehran requested further negotiations, but declared that last month's ceasefire between the two countries was "over".
The U.S. military said on Wednesday it launched fresh strikes on Iran to keep the Strait of Hormuz open to shipping, triggering Iranian attacks on Kuwait and Bahrain in the latest escalation to derail efforts to end the war.
China has approved fast-fashion retailer Shein's long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong, clearing the way for the company to pursue a stock market listing after previous attempts in the U.S. and London failed.
European carmakers have urged the European Union to make sure new “Made in EU” rules do not put existing investments in Türkiye and Morocco at risk.
Microsoft is expected to announce a new round of job cuts as early as next week as the technology giant looks to reduce costs, according to reports.
A Swedish court has ordered Alphabet-owned Google to pay about $1.5 billion in antitrust damages to price comparison platform PriceRunner, in one of Europe's largest competition-related awards against a major technology company.
U.S. President Donald Trump earned more than $1bn from cryptocurrency-related business ventures last year, according to his mandatory 2025 financial disclosure.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment