The move comes a week after competitor Anthropic, the maker of AI Claude, made a similar announcement. In April, SpaceX, which acquired xAI, the developer of Grok, also filed for an IPO.
According to CNN, the three listings are expected to reach a total offering value of up to hundreds of billions of USD. This is both an opportunity for individual investors to buy shares in leading AI startups and an important test of market interest in companies in the artificial intelligence sector.
OpenAI has stated that it has not yet decided on a specific IPO timeline. As the filing was submitted confidentially, it is currently unclear how many shares the company intends to sell and at what price.
“It may take some time as there are still things we want to accomplish that might be easier as a private company,” OpenAI said on September 8, adding that the filing gives them “the option to go public earlier if that is the best route.”
Successfully transitioning to a public company will provide Wall Street with a clearer view of OpenAI’s financial situation as the company invests billions into AI infrastructure and computing resources. OpenAI was valued at 852 billion USD after its most recent funding round in March, but is under pressure to demonstrate revenue generation that corresponds with that valuation.
Over the past year, OpenAI has expanded its monetization options for ChatGPT by launching a cheaper subscription plan at 8 USD per month and integrating advertisements. According to The Information, OpenAI expects the lower-priced service to increase subscribers to 122 million this year and predicts that advertising will be the biggest revenue source by 2030.
OpenAI is also working to demonstrate that it is not solely reliant on ChatGPT. In recent months, the company has released a web browser, announced plans to develop consumer hardware products, introduced AI agents capable of programming and managing applications on personal computers, and developed AI programs and tools for government, healthcare, and finance.
The OpenAI logo and some of the company’s products displayed on a smartphone. Photo: Reuters
OpenAI was founded in 2015 as a non-profit organization focused on research, but four years later, the company established a for-profit branch to cover the increasing costs associated with developing AI systems. According to Reuters, this unique structure, where the non-profit controls the for-profit entity, has come under close scrutiny at the end of 2023, when CEO Sam Altman was fired and then returned after a few days.
In December 2024, OpenAI announced plans to restructure by forming a public benefit corporation, believing this move would help raise more capital while easing the restrictions imposed by the non-profit organization. The restructuring plan quickly became controversial. Elon Musk, a co-founder of OpenAI, later sued OpenAI, accusing Altman and other executives of turning the original non-profit into a tool for personal enrichment.
Last month, a U.S. jury concluded that OpenAI was not liable to Elon Musk regarding allegations of deviating from its original mission. Analysts believe that the ruling has removed a significant hurdle for OpenAI’s IPO.
Thu Thao summarized.
