OpenAI is nearing a deal to raise an additional $10 billion in new primary equity, according to a Bloomberg report on Tuesday, bringing its already massive fundraising rounds into historic territory as demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure continues to surge.
Funding Details: Same Valuation, New Investors
The new tranche is priced at a pre-money valuation of $730 billion, the same as the company's February fundraising round, signaling that investors are willing to write large checks without demanding a discount. Participants include MGX, Coatue Management, Thrive Capital, and potentially Altimeter Capital.
If the deal closes by the end of March, the total capital raised in this broader round will approach $120 billion, combining the new $10 billion with the $110 billion previously raised from strategic backers such as Amazon, Softbank, and Nvidia. That would place OpenAI's post-money valuation in the range of $840 billion to $850 billion, making it one of the most valuable private companies in the world.
Capital Deployment and Financial Health
Behind the scenes, the funds are earmarked for familiar line items: data centers, compute clusters, hiring, and product expansion. Running frontier AI models is expensive — reports indicate OpenAI's monthly costs are approaching $4 billion. However, revenue growth continues to keep pace. ChatGPT now boasts over 900 million weekly active users and more than 50 million paid subscribers, giving investors reason to stay confident despite the high burn rate.
OpenAI had indicated in February that additional financial investors would join the round as it progressed, and this latest injection appears to complete that plan without any major changes to key terms.
Nonprofit Arm: $1 Billion Grant Initiative
Separately from the equity raise, OpenAI's nonprofit arm announced it would distribute $1 billion in grants throughout 2026, focusing on AI safety, biosecurity risk mitigation, and life science applications. The foundation has also expanded its leadership team, with co-founder Wojciech Zaremba moving into a senior role covering safety and philanthropic projects, signaling a more systematic approach to its original mission.
The foundation's stake in OpenAI is now valued at over $180 billion based on the latest valuation trajectory, giving it significant influence over how those funds are allocated.
Market Reaction and IPO Outlook
The timing of both announcements has sparked discussion among investors and on social media, with the scale of the raise and the consistency of the valuation being the most watched topics. In the broader AI race, competitor Anthropic has also closed its own large funding rounds, but OpenAI remains ahead in terms of scale, partnerships, and infrastructure spending. The company currently shows no rush to go public, eyeing a potential IPO in late 2026, while this new funding helps extend its runway.