OpenAI is reportedly raising money at a $150 billion valuation — more than the market capitalization of over 88% of Fortune 500 firms, including Goldman Sachs, Uber, and BlackRock.The startup is in talks to raise $6.5 billion from various investors, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The valuation does not include the amount being invested.OpenAI is also looking to raise $5 billion in debt, Bloomberg reported.The new valuation makes the startup one of the most valuable in the world — and it’s a big jump from the company’s previous $86 billion valuation. This figure was calculated when the company allowed employees to start selling stakes in the company in February.The funding round will be led by Josh Kushner’s Thrive Capital, a New York venture firm known for its early bets on startups including Instagram, Stripe, Robinhood, Spotify, and Slack.Microsoft, which has been a partner since 2019, Apple, and even Nvidia have also been discussing investing in the ChatGPT maker.
Even though it’s a startup with an unconventional structure — a nonprofit partnered with a capped profit arm — OpenAI has already proven to be the leader in AI among a growing field of well-funded competitors looking to capitalize on the technology.In a memo sent to employees last month, OpenAI chief financial officer Sarah Friar wrote the money raised will be used for computing power and other operating costs, Bloomberg reported. The memo also noted that the startup is planning to allow employees to sell some of their shares in a tender offer later this year.A tender offer gives employees of private companies a chance to sell a certain number of shares at a fixed price during a limited time frame. It is especially common for startups like OpenAI that opt to stay private — so employees can’t cash out immediately through an initial public offering.OpenAI joins a handful of other private companies valued much more than most publicly-traded peers. Elon Musk’s SpaceX was valued at close to $210 billion in June, after selling its insider shares for $112 in a tender offer. Other large private companies include TikTok parent ByteDance, which was valued at $286 billion at the end of last year, and Stripe, which was valued at $70 billion in July.OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
