OpenAI is reportedly discussing the sale of shares held by current and former employees, a move that could value the company at an astonishing $50 trillion, surpassing Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
As the deal advances, the valuation of the ChatGPT developer is expected to rise by nearly two-thirds from its current $300 million (£22.5 billion).
Currently, Musk’s Rocket Company is valued at $3.5 trillion and is nearing a price tag of $400 million with new investments.
According to Bloomberg, which first reported on the talks, existing investors such as Thrive Capital approached OpenAI about acquiring shares from employees. Other backers of the San Francisco-based OpenAI include SoftBank, which led the $300 million funding round, and Microsoft.
Both OpenAI and Thrive Capital have chosen not to comment on the matter.
Tech startups frequently organize employee stock sales to boost motivation among staff and attract investors.
OpenAI faces competitive challenges from Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta in retaining key personnel, and employee stock sales could serve as incentives for retention. Facebook’s parent company has been actively recruiting OpenAI employees to develop its “Superintelligence” unit.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman noted that despite Meta offering a staggering $100 million (£74 million) signing bonus, “none of our top talent” has left.
Another competitor, HumanAI, founded by former OpenAI employees, is reportedly in talks to raise funds that would value the company at $170 billion. Funding is crucial for AI startups aiming to leverage expensive computer chips and data center resources to train more advanced models that enhance their products.
This report emerges as Altman mentioned that OpenAI is set to unveil an upgraded version of its ChatGPT model. He shared a screenshot on Sunday that appeared to showcase the latest AI model, GPT-5, on social media.
OpenAI also launched two new open models recently, which intensify competition against Meta and China’s DeepSeek, offering open AI models that can be freely downloaded and customized.
“This model is the outcome of a multi-billion dollar research initiative aimed at making AI accessible to the widest audience possible,” Altman stated.
However, OpenAI primarily operates on a “closed” model, meaning you’ll need to pay for an enhanced version of ChatGPT or subscribe to integrate that model into your business.
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OpenAI operates as a profitable nonprofit organization and is still engaged in negotiations to transition into a for-profit model, amidst ongoing tensions with Microsoft.
In a June interview with the New York Times podcast, Altman acknowledged, “There certainly are points of tension in deep partnerships, and we are experiencing some of that.”
In March, a U.S. judge dismissed a request for a preliminary injunction by Musk to halt the shift toward an open commercial model. Musk, co-founder of OpenAI in 2019, left the organization the same year, criticizing it for deviating from its founding mission of advancing artificial intelligence for the greater good, rather than for profit.
Additionally, OpenAI is advancing its hardware segment after acquiring the startup IO, founded by iPhone designer Sir Jony Ive, in a $6.4 billion deal. Altman reportedly informed employees that OpenAI is developing a 100 million AI “people” intended to become integral to users’ daily experiences.
Although Altman describes the prototype as “the most exciting technology the world has ever seen,” mass production of the unknown IO device isn’t expected to commence until 2027.
Source: www.theguardian.com
