OpenAI is preparing for a new funding round with a valuation of $1.2 trillion, according to the FT. Will it overtake Anthropic?

AI giant OpenAI is in preliminary talks with investors about a new private funding round that could value the company at approximately $1.2 trillion, sources told the Financial Times. The publication notes that following the previous round, which took place in March, the company was valued at $852 billion.

The talks are still in the early stages and their terms may change, sources told the FT. However, according to them, the initiative came directly from market participants.

The timing and necessity of the new round are closely tied to OpenAI’s plans to go public, the publication reports. Company CEO Sam Altman confirmed last week that its IPO will not take place this year. He called it an inopportune moment “given everything that’s happening in the security space”—following a series of alarming incidents, including hacks of third-party websites by swarms of autonomous AI agents.

It is noteworthy that OpenAI’s key competitor—Anthropic—is still preparing to go public as early as October and is aiming for a $2 trillion valuation, as the FT previously reported. According to several media outlets, the company has chosen the Nasdaq stock exchange for its initial public offering. It is currently the world’s most valuable startup—during a funding round announced in May, it was valued at $965 billion, while in August, its valuation on the over-the-counter market jumped to $1.5 trillion, Business Insider reported, citing three brokers.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor