OpenAI's $30 Billion Round at $1.4 Trillion Has No Lead Investor Yet, Report Says

OpenAI's push to raise about $30 billion at a valuation above $1.4 trillion before Anthropic's expected mid-November IPO has picked up new detail. OpenAI is presenting $1.4 trillion to investors as a fixed pre-money price, even though it has not settled on a lead investor, according to Tech Funding News.

The round was first reported by Reuters, citing people familiar with the matter. SoftBank Group and Abu Dhabi's MGX, both existing backers, are in talks to join. OpenAI and SoftBank declined to comment. Anthropic and MGX did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Who is at the table

Tech Funding News previously reported that UAE funds have discussed investing up to $10 billion between them. It also reported that BlackRock and the University of California's endowment are in talks.

None of those commitments is final. A price with no anchor investor is an ask, not a market-tested number.

The round would come less than seven months after OpenAI's $122 billion raise in March at an $852 billion valuation, anchored by Amazon, Nvidia and SoftBank. A $1.4 trillion mark is about 64% higher than that.

What OpenAI is telling investors

OpenAI has told prospective investors that annualized revenue reached about $50 billion after the launch of its GPT-6 Astra model. It expects the figure to hit $70 billion by year-end. The company also says price cuts on its cheaper models have boosted usage and that it can lower prices further.

Those are OpenAI's own figures, pitched to investors. They are not audited numbers.

Separately, Crypto Briefing reported that OpenAI plans to tighten usage limits on its subscription plans, reducing usage subsidies. An analyst identified as Kain told that outlet the change could improve profitability.

Investors familiar with the company told Reuters that OpenAI needs cash for its infrastructure commitments. They also said it wants a cushion if weaker IPO markets delay its planned 2027 listing.

Anthropic's numbers

Anthropic's annualized revenue reached about $65 billion by July, according to investor reports. Its quarterly revenue rose to $16.8 billion in the third quarter from $11.6 billion in the second.

Slowing month-on-month growth has worried some investors. After third-quarter results missed expectations, some existing and prospective Anthropic investors have argued for a debut valuation closer to $1.5 trillion rather than the $2 trillion the company wants.

The two companies' revenue figures cannot be compared directly, according to a TradingKey analysis. OpenAI recognizes revenue net, deducting the share allocated to cloud services and other partners upfront. Anthropic counts the gross contract value sold through third-party cloud platforms.

The timing argument

Some investors read OpenAI's speed as an effort to lock up money that might otherwise go to Anthropic's offering, Reuters' sources said. They also see an attempt to close before Anthropic's financial disclosures invite side-by-side comparison. Funds would have to weigh two trillion-dollar deals within days or weeks of each other.

OpenAI has not publicly confirmed that motive. Its stated pitch to investors is revenue momentum after its latest model launches.

The market backdrop is rough. Reuters reported that companies in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index have lost more than $1.6 trillion in market value in less than two weeks. CoreWeave, which carries roughly $50 billion in debt, saw its shares and bonds tumble.

AirTrunk REIT, Firmus and SoftBank-backed SB Energy have pulled or paused listings, Tech Funding News reported. Bankers say several companies are waiting until after Anthropic lists.

On Wednesday, Oct. 21, the S&P 500 closed down 0.92% at 7,695.00. The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.69% to 29,356.60.

What comes next

A post on X from the account @exec_sum claimed OpenAI is finalizing a "final" private round at $1.4 trillion. Nothing from OpenAI or the investors in talks confirms a closing.

It is unclear whether investors will commit at $1.4 trillion before seeing Anthropic's books. Once those numbers are public, both companies will be priced against them.