TLDR
- OpenAI is close to closing a round of up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation.
- Investors from the United Arab Emirates and Coatue are leading the deal.
- The valuation is down from a previously reported $1.4 trillion, according to the Financial Times.
- OpenAI is also negotiating a deal for more computing capacity from the UAE.
- The company filed confidentially for an IPO in June, and its CFO says it will be public in 2027.
OpenAI is close to finalizing a funding round of up to $30 billion. The round would value the company at $1.25 trillion before the new money is counted, according to people familiar with the deal.
OPENAI NEARS $30 BILLION FUNDING ROUND AT $1.25 TRILLION VALUATION: CNBC
UAE investors and Coatue are leading the financing, which is being positioned as a bridge ahead of a potential IPO in 2027.
OpenAI is targeting investor signatures by the end of next week, although the… pic.twitter.com/iz9KESIqBC
— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) October 22, 2026
The sources asked not to be named because the details are confidential. CNBC reported the news on Thursday.
Who Is Leading the Round
Investors from the United Arab Emirates are leading the financing. Coatue, a U.S. investment firm, is also taking part.
The round is being described as an “opportunistic” bridge ahead of a possible initial public offering. It would give the San Francisco-based company more capital before it goes public.
OpenAI began talks on a new round after investors approached the company with proposals in September. On Thursday, it told investors it hopes to get signatures by the end of next week.
The final size of the round has not been set. The $30 billion figure is the upper end of what OpenAI is seeking.
A Lower Valuation Than Reported Before
The Financial Times reported that OpenAI cut its valuation target by $150 billion. The earlier reported figure was $1.4 trillion.
The new number is still above OpenAI’s last reported valuation of $852 billion in March 2026. The report said some investors were hesitant to buy in at the higher price.
Investor demand has reportedly been weaker than in past rounds. The report said investors are growing more cautious about the cost of building AI infrastructure.
Some investors worry that heavy spending on data centers and computing power may not pay off. The report also said some may be feeling funding fatigue after putting large sums into AI companies in recent years.
The cut comes as U.S. tech stocks face a sell-off. Meta Platforms fell about 7% on Wednesday after its third-quarter results.
Meta beat revenue estimates but raised concerns about higher capital spending. It lifted the low end of its spending forecast from $130 billion to $135 billion. The upper end stayed at $145 billion.
Computing Deal and IPO Plans
OpenAI is also negotiating a commercial deal to secure more computing capacity from the UAE, according to one person familiar with the talks. In February, the company told investors it is targeting about $600 billion in total compute spending by 2030.
OpenAI confidentially filed its prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission in June. It has not said when it plans to debut.
CFO Sarah Friar told employees in August that OpenAI “will be a public company in 2027.” The next month, CEO Sam Altman said “right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public.”
Rival Anthropic also filed confidentially in June and is meeting with prospective investors. It is reportedly seeking a valuation between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion in an offering.
In May, Anthropic closed a $65 billion funding round at a $965 billion valuation.
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