AI News · Hot news ·
OpenAI seeks up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion valuation before IPO
OpenAI is working to raise up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation, CNBC reported, citing sources. The round is led by Coatue and includes investors from the UAE, and terms are still being negotiated. OpenAI declined to comment.
Key points
- CNBC reported OpenAI seeks up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation.
- Coatue leads the round, which includes UAE investors; terms could still change.
- OpenAI filed confidential IPO paperwork in June 2026 after an $852 billion March valuation.
What happened: OpenAI is working to raise up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation, CNBC reported, citing sources. The round is led by Coatue and includes investors from the UAE. According to CNBC, the UAE funding could be paired with a deal giving OpenAI more computing capacity from the UAE. OpenAI declined to comment.
The details: About a month earlier, Bloomberg reported that OpenAI was working to raise $30 billion at a $1.4 trillion valuation. Both outlets reported that the terms are still being negotiated and could change. TechCrunch noted that a valuation above $1 trillion would make OpenAI the most valuable private company ever and would raise the bar for its planned IPO.
Background: OpenAI filed confidential IPO paperwork in June 2026. Its raise in March 2026 valued the company at $852 billion post-money. Rival Anthropic also filed confidential IPO paperwork in June, after raising $65 billion at a $965 billion valuation in May. CNBC reported that Anthropic is seeking a valuation of $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion for its public debut.
What to watch: Whether the final valuation lands closer to $1.25 trillion or the $1.4 trillion figure reported earlier, and whether the compute arrangement with the UAE is confirmed. The timing of both companies' public listings has not been disclosed.
Our take
A larger war chest for OpenAI ahead of a public listing points to continued heavy investment in the products and compute that business customers rely on.