According to reports from The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI is preparing to confidentially file for a U.S. initial public offering in the coming days, with the company aiming to go public as early as September 2026. The ChatGPT maker is working with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley on a draft IPO prospectus that it plans to file with regulators soon. The timing strategy appears designed to capitalize on market attention, as the filing comes close to SpaceX's IPO, which is now officially headed for the public market. As a source familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal, the plan comes two days after OpenAI fended off an existential court challenge from Elon Musk, which removed a major obstacle to an IPO and likely gave the company confidence to accelerate its timeline. CEO Sam Altman has been keen to move ahead with a listing, while Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has previously suggested more time may be needed before pursuing an IPO.
As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the plan comes two days after OpenAI fended off an existential court challenge from Elon Musk, which removed a major obstacle to an IPO and likely gave the company confidence to accelerate its timeline. According to IPOX Vice President Kat Liu, resolving the legal overhang removed a major obstacle to an IPO and likely gave OpenAI the confidence to accelerate its timeline. The timing of the filing near SpaceX's IPO also takes some scrutiny off of OpenAI and allows the company to tell its own story. Liu noted that "simultaneous filings also force portfolio managers to evaluate both companies side by side," adding another strategic dimension to the timing decision. However, Musk has indicated he intends to appeal the ruling, keeping some uncertainty around the legal landscape.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the Sam Altman-led company was last valued at ₹7,100 crore ($852 billion) and was laying the groundwork to go public in an offering that could value it at up to ₹8,200 crore ($1 trillion). The company had raised ₹10,100 crore ($122 billion) earlier this year, likely marking Silicon Valley's largest-ever funding round. The IPO could potentially raise at least ₹4,800 crore ($60 billion) at the low end in preliminary discussions. As The Wall Street Journal reports, AI's revolutionary use cases have unleashed an investor frenzy in names believed to emerge as key winners from wider adoption of the technology. Despite strong investor interest, analysts say OpenAI faces several challenges before going public, including questions around corporate governance and leadership following recent legal battles.
As reported by The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI has revised its product roadmap twice in recent months as it grapples with fierce competition from rivals, first Google and then Anthropic. Anthropic, which has cemented its lead in the enterprise AI market, is expected by some industry watchers to surpass OpenAI's revenue growth in the months ahead. Despite these challenges, ChatGPT serves more than 900 million weekly active users and has surpassed 50 million consumer subscribers, according to OpenAI statements earlier this year. Investors are also expected to closely examine whether OpenAI can generate sufficient revenue to offset enormous spending on AI chips, cloud infrastructure and data centres, which are essential to training and operating advanced AI systems.
The timing of OpenAI's IPO filing coincides with what's expected to be a landmark year for AI-related public offerings, with SpaceX and Anthropic also eyeing the public market. SpaceX officially filed for an IPO on Wednesday, planning to list on Nasdaq under ticker SPCX with Goldman Sachs as lead underwriter, followed by Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase. SpaceX was valued at ₹10,250 crore ($1.25 trillion) in February after merging with xAI, meaning new investors will be buying in at a historically high price. The IPO is likely to be the first of three potential mega offerings this year, with OpenAI and Anthropic both positioning themselves for public debuts, creating what could be a transformative period for AI-focused companies in the public markets.
