OpenAI eyes $500B valuation, challenging SpaceX for private company record
OpenAI, the artificial intelligence powerhouse behind ChatGPT, is reportedly in advanced discussions to achieve a staggering $500 billion valuation, a move that would crown it the world’s most valuable private company. This potential milestone hinges on talks to sell $6 billion in shares, primarily from current and former employees, to a cohort of investors. Should the deal materialize, OpenAI would significantly outpace Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which currently holds the title with an estimated valuation of $350 billion.
This proposed valuation marks a meteoric ascent for the startup, which has seen its market worth skyrocket in recent years. As of March, OpenAI was valued at $300 billion, a substantial leap from its $157 billion valuation just last October. The rapid growth has attracted significant capital, with investors like Microsoft and SoftBank already pouring at least $40 billion into the company. The current share sale discussions reportedly involve existing investors such as SoftBank, Dragoneer Investment Group, and Thrive Capital, though sources indicate these talks are in early stages and figures could still fluctuate. OpenAI has declined to comment on the ongoing negotiations.
OpenAI’s ambitious financial trajectory unfolds within an intensely competitive landscape, where the world’s most formidable technology companies are locked in a fierce battle for AI supremacy. Tech giants including Meta, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft are investing colossal sums in AI development, aggressively recruiting engineers and constructing vast data centers. In 2025 alone, these four companies collectively allocated an estimated $155 billion to advancing their artificial intelligence capabilities.
Despite its impressive financial momentum, OpenAI has recently faced public scrutiny regarding its core technology. The much-anticipated debut of GPT-5, the latest iteration of the AI model underpinning ChatGPT, received a lukewarm reception earlier this month. Users reported that the new model’s writing quality appeared to have declined, and it seemed to lack the distinctive personality of its predecessors. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, while affirming that GPT-5 is “generally intelligent,” acknowledged that it has not yet achieved the capability for “continuous learning,” a key step towards the company’s stated goal of developing “artificial general intelligence” (AGI)—an AI capable of outperforming humans across most tasks.
Beyond the technical challenges, AI companies, including OpenAI, are also navigating an increasingly vigilant regulatory environment. Regulators worldwide are scrutinizing the development and deployment of chatbots and other AI systems, particularly concerning their potential to generate harmful conversations or manipulate users. As OpenAI pursues unprecedented valuations, it simultaneously faces the complex task of balancing rapid innovation with public expectations, technological limitations, and mounting regulatory pressures.