OpenAI has been valued at $150 billion U.S. in a new funding round that seeks to raise $6.5 billion U.S. for the privately held start-up company.
The new valuation for OpenAI, the company behind the ChatGPT artificial intelligence assistant, is significantly more than the $86 billion U.S. valuation placed on the company at the start of this year.
As recently as 2023, OpenAI was valued at less than $30 billion U.S. However, the company’s valuation has soared over the past year along with demand for it’s A.I. applications and models.
The latest funding round is being led by Thrive Capital. However, tech giants Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL) and Nvidia (NVDA) are also reportedly planning to invest in OpenAI.
Microsoft has already invested $13 billion U.S. in OpenAI and uses the company’s A.I. technology in its Bing internet search engine.
Multiple media reports say that OpenAI is also in talks to raise $5 billion U.S. in debt from several U.S. banks in the form of a revolving credit facility.
Founded in 2015 as a non-profit, OpenAI has evolved significantly in recent years. In the last 12 months, the company has overhauled its board of directors and its executive leadership team.
OpenAI has said that the new funding will help it develop needed computing power and cover operating expenses.
While Wall Street has been clamouring for OpenAI to go public, the company has so far resisted holding an initial public offering (IPO).
