OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is working with major Wall Street banks on plans for a potential stock market listing that could happen in the coming months, according to reports.
Bankers at firms including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are said to be helping the artificial intelligence giant prepare a confidential IPO filing with regulators, which could be submitted as soon as this week, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
If the plans move ahead, OpenAI could be ready to go public as early as September, although sources caution the timeline is not final and could still change.
The company, led by Sam Altman, recently cleared a key legal hurdle after winning a court battle with co-founder Elon Musk.
Musk, however, is expected to appeal the decision.
OpenAI would still face major challenges before any listing, including questions over whether it can generate enough revenue to justify its huge spending on data centers and computing infrastructure.
Competition in the AI sector is also intensifying, with rival Anthropic rapidly gaining ground and tech giants such as Google also pushing ahead with their own AI tools.
The company has reportedly missed some internal targets for revenue and user growth in recent months, despite being valued at around $852 billion in a recent funding round.
Sam Altman’s company OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is working with major Wall Street banks on plans for a potential stock market listing that could happen in the coming months
Competition in the AI sector is intensifying, with rival Anthropic rapidly gaining ground and tech giants such as Google also pushing ahead with their own AI tools
The company recently cleared a key legal hurdle after winning a court battle with co-founder Elon Mus
While Altman has reportedly pushed for an IPO, OpenAI’s finance chief Sarah Friar is said to have urged caution, with discussions inside the company still ongoing.
This year could end up being the biggest ever for IPOs in terms of money raised, if current plans go ahead.
Alongside potential blockbuster listings from SpaceX and OpenAI, AI firm Anthropic is also reportedly exploring a huge public debut.
At the same time, smaller companies are also stepping up plans to float, adding to a broader pickup in listing activity across markets.
