OpenAI is in early talks to let current and former employees sell shares in a secondary offering, which could value the company at around $500 billion, according to CNBC reporting. The transaction, which would occur ahead of a potential IPO, marks a sharp increase from OpenAI’s previous $300 billion valuation.
The share sale could involve several billion dollars in stock and may be led by existing investor Thrive Capital. Discussions remain private, and OpenAI has not commented publicly. Bloomberg was the first to report on the potential deal.
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What is driving OpenAI’s rising valuation?
OpenAI’s soaring valuation reflects rapid growth in both revenue and user adoption. The company’s annualized revenue more than doubled in the first half of 2025, reaching $12 billion by July and projected to hit $20 billion by year’s end, according to a source cited by Reuters. Its flagship product, ChatGPT, now serves approximately 700 million weekly active users — up from 400 million in February.
OpenAI also launched a $40 billion funding round earlier this year, led by Japan’s SoftBank Group. The round has already secured most of its target, with SoftBank expected to contribute $22.5 billion by year-end. Last week, OpenAI announced it had raised $8.3 billion in the second tranche of that round.
What new technologies has OpenAI introduced?
The company continues to broaden its AI toolset. OpenAI released two open-weight language models on Tuesday, Aug. 5, its first open-source offerings since GPT-2 in 2019. The models are designed to offer more accessible, customizable AI options for developers and researchers.
OpenAI is also preparing for the release of GPT-5, the next-generation version of its core language model.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said GPT-5 will combine “test-time compute” — a technique that channels extra processing power during inference — with traditional large model training. This dual approach aims to enhance GPT-5’s ability to handle complex tasks like advanced reasoning, mathematics and decision-making.
Is OpenAI planning to go public?
While OpenAI hasn’t committed to a timeline for an initial public offering, the company is reportedly undergoing corporate restructuring to move away from its capped-profit model. Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar said in May that the company would only consider an IPO when both the business and market conditions are ready.
The proposed employee share sale aligns with a broader trend among private tech companies — including Databricks, ByteDance and Ramp — that have turned to private secondary markets to reward long-term employees and evaluate their market value ahead of public listings.
