OpenAI Cuts Valuation Target to $1.25 Trillion for New $30 Billion Round

OpenAI is closing in on a new private raise of up to $30 billion that values the company at $1.25 trillion before the new money, with Coatue and investors from the United Arab Emirates leading the round, AutoGPT and 24/7 Wall St. reported on Thursday. OpenAI told investors it wants signatures by the end of next week.

The price is lower than what OpenAI pitched earlier this month. It had sought the same $30 billion at a $1.4 trillion pre-money valuation from potential backers including BlackRock and UAE fund MGX, but cut the figure by $150 billion after some investors pushed back, according to the reports. No reason for the reduction was disclosed.

If the full $30 billion is raised, OpenAI's post-money valuation would be about $1.28 trillion, which AutoGPT said would make it the most valuable private company in history. The company is keeping the round private even after confidentially filing IPO paperwork in June. Chief financial officer Sarah Friar told employees in August that a listing would probably happen in 2027, and CEO Sam Altman said in September that an IPO now would be a bad idea because of the summer's rogue agent episodes, the dismissal of safety researchers and the Apple trade secret lawsuit.

OpenAI described the round as "opportunistic," which AutoGPT interpreted as a need for capital without disclosing public-company financials. The company told investors its annualized revenue is on pace for $50 billion and it is targeting $70 billion by the end of the year, and that compute spending could reach about $600 billion by 2030.

Alongside the equity, OpenAI is in talks for a commercial agreement to obtain more computing power from the UAE, CNBC reported, according to AutoGPT. 24/7 Wall St. also reported the separate computing deal. This continues a pattern of bundling infrastructure commitments with fundraising, following the Stargate joint venture with SoftBank and an Amazon deal that included AWS Trainium capacity.

The round is being structured with an eye on rival Anthropic's expected IPO filing in mid-November. Reports suggest OpenAI wants to lock in commitments before Anthropic goes public so it can set its valuation privately. In May, Anthropic raised $65 billion at a valuation of $965 billion, and latest reports have Anthropic seeking $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion for its public debut, which could make the valuation gap flip if Anthropic lists at the high end.

On the day of the valuation cut, public AI stocks fell. Microsoft, OpenAI's largest listed backer, dropped 2.23% to $521.08, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.60 percent, closing at 26,008.86, its largest one-day decline since early June, as worries about AI spending mounted, 24/7 Wall St. reported. Microsoft's shares later rose 0.18% in after-hours trading.

Microsoft's Azure contract with OpenAI is a bigger factor than its equity stake, 24/7 Wall St. noted. Under the agreement, OpenAI committed to purchasing an additional $250 billion of Azure cloud services, and Microsoft's rights to OpenAI's models extend to 2032. Azure's revenue grew 43 percent in fiscal Q4 and surpassed $100 billion on an annual basis, while commercial remaining performance obligations rose 84% to $678 billion.

OpenAI's valuation has climbed from $300 billion in March 2025 to $852 billion in March 2026 and now $1.25 trillion, a fourfold increase in 18 months, while annualized revenue rose from $13 billion to $50 billion, AutoGPT reported. That implies a revenue multiple of 25 times for a company that reported a $9 billion loss in 2025 and has not disclosed 2026 profitability. The round would bring OpenAI's total private capital raised since 2023 to well over $200 billion.

OpenAI declined to comment, according to both reports.

Update, October 24, 2026

OpenAI set an October 30 deadline for commitments to its new financing and may take in less than $30 billion if investor demand is weak, the Financial Times reported through Benzinga. Morgan Stanley and Dragoneer had presented the offering to private wealth clients at the $1.4 trillion valuation, but interest was cooler than in earlier OpenAI rounds. A source described it: "All the prior times [OpenAI] have been on there’s been a frenzy. This time is a bit of a thud."

Some investors said they are waiting to see Anthropic's IPO pricing later this year before putting money into OpenAI. The company is seeking the capital as a bridge toward a possible public listing in the first half of 2027, without a set date.

OpenAI's annualized revenue has topped $40 billion, nearly double the level at the end of 2025, and President Greg Brockman said the run rate jumped more than 20% in July alone. CEO Sam Altman said: "Right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public, and we don’t feel pressure on that."