OpenAI Nears $30 Billion Funding Round at $1.25 Trillion Valuation, Led by UAE Investors

OpenAI is close to finalizing a funding round of up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation, led by investors from the United Arab Emirates alongside Coatue. The company has told investors it's aiming to have signatures in place by the end of next week, though the final size of the round is still being worked out.

A bridge to a 2027 IPO

The round marks a dramatic jump from OpenAI's last major raise, a $122 billion round in March that valued the company at $852 billion. People familiar with the plans describe the new financing as a bridge round, meant to carry OpenAI through to a planned initial public offering in 2027 rather than as a terminal valuation event.

Alongside the equity investment, OpenAI is separately negotiating a commercial agreement with UAE-linked parties that would secure additional computing capacity for the company, tying the new capital directly to the infrastructure OpenAI needs to keep training and running its models. The scale of both the funding round and the computing deal underscores how much capital the AI industry's leading players are now raising simply to keep pace with demand for their own products.