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ChatGPT Maker OpenAI Seeks $6B Share Sale, Eyes $500B Valuation
19 Aug
Summary
- OpenAI in talks to sell $6B in shares, boosting valuation to $500B
- Surpasses SpaceX as world's most valuable private company
- AI companies like Meta, Google, Amazon spending billions on AI development
As of August 20th, 2025, OpenAI, the company behind the popular ChatGPT AI assistant, is on the verge of becoming the world's most valuable private company. The artificial intelligence startup is reportedly in talks to sell $6 billion worth of shares, which would boost its valuation to a staggering $500 billion, nearly half the size of Tesla.
This potential valuation would surpass that of Elon Musk's SpaceX, which currently holds the title of the world's most valuable privately held company at $350 billion. OpenAI's exponential growth over the past year has attracted significant investment, with Microsoft and SoftBank among the major backers pouring at least $40 billion into the startup.
The reported cohort of investors now eyeing OpenAI's share sale include three firms that have already invested: SoftBank, Dragoneer Investment Group, and Thrive Capital. While the talks are still in the early stages, the potential $500 billion valuation would cement OpenAI's position as a dominant force in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape.
The AI race has intensified, with the world's tech giants, including Meta, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft, all spending enormous sums on developing their own AI capabilities. These companies have collectively invested $155 billion in AI development in 2025 alone, as they strive to outmaneuver one another in this critical field.
Despite the impressive growth, OpenAI's latest AI model, GPT-5, which underpins the ChatGPT chatbot, received a lukewarm reception at its recent launch. Users reported that the new model's writing was less impressive and lacked the personality of previous iterations. However, OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, has stated that the company is pursuing "artificial general intelligence," an AI that can outperform humans in most tasks, though it is not yet able to "continuously learn."
