Newsletter
OpenAI has just pulled off its biggest funding round yet, raising a massive $122 billion at an eye-popping $852 billion valuation, as it gears up for a potential IPO this year.
The deets: big names like Amazon, Nvidia and SoftBank have poured in billions, with SoftBank alone committing $110 billion.
At the same time, OpenAI is being a bit more careful with its spending. It has pulled back on some big plans and even shut down products like its short-form video experiment, Sora, as it tries to control costs. That’s because running AI at this scale is expensive, from chips and data centers to hiring top talent.
The numbers: OpenAI now has over 900 million weekly users, 50 million subscribers, and its search usage has nearly tripled in a year. It’s also testing ads, already bringing in over $100 million in annual revenue in just weeks.
But it’s not a smooth ride. Competition is heating up from players like Anthropic and Google. There’s also a legal battle looming.
In April, OpenAI will face Elon Musk in court, with Musk accusing the company of abandoning its original mission by becoming more profit-driven. OpenAI, on the other hand, says Musk is simply unhappy after leaving and starting his own competing AI venture.
