Catenaa, Tuesday, October 20, 2026- OpenAI is racing to secure $30 billion in investor commitments in the latest funding round before Anthropic goes public.
According to Reuters, the ChatGPT maker is in talks with the Abu Dhabi-based MGX, SoftBank and other investors to raise about $30 billion, which would take OpenAI’s valuation to $1.4 trillion.
OpenAI is accelerating its fundraising as competition for investment capital intensifies ahead of Anthropic’s anticipated stock market debut. People familiar with the discussions told Reuters that OpenAI also hopes to benefit from growing investor interest following its recent model launches and revenue expansion.
Reuters reported that OpenAI met last week with sovereign wealth funds and long-only funds, while Anthropic held its own investor day.
Both companies are drawing on a similar pool of investors. Some investors read OpenAI’s fundraising drive as a bid to secure money from funds that could otherwise put more toward Anthropic’s IPO, Reuters reported.
Reuters reported that OpenAI is telling investors that annualized revenue hit $50 billion after the debut of its GPT-6 Astra model, and that it projects $70 billion by the close of the year.
OpenAI has lowered the prices of its less expensive models, a move it says has driven greater usage, according to Reuters.
Anthropic’s annualized revenue stood at around $65 billion in July, Reuters reported. Anthropic told investors that third-quarter revenue climbed to $16.8 billion, up from $11.6 billion in the second quarter, according to Reuters.
Some current and potential Anthropic investors have pushed for a listing valuation of about $1.5 trillion, not the $2 trillion the company is seeking, after those results missed expectations, Reuters reported.
Differences in revenue recognition could complicate comparisons between OpenAI and Anthropic. OpenAI reports revenue after accounting for payments to distribution partners, while it has questioned Anthropic’s approach to recognizing sales generated through external cloud providers. Anthropic maintains that its accounting methods follow accepted standards, Reuters reported.
According to Reuters, OpenAI wants to accelerate the funding round before Anthropic’s financial disclosures reach investors.
However, Reuters said the disclosures could put pressure on investors to demand more detailed financial information from OpenAI, putting CFO Sarah Friar under pressure to explain revenue growth and future earnings prospects.
“OpenAI could want to set its own valuation and not have to worry about a comp (comparison),” Edward Best, co-chair of capital markets at Willkie Farr & Gallagher, told Reuters. Best has no role in the deal and was speaking hypothetically. “It’s really a two-horse race in terms of being public,” he said, according to The Next Web.
OpenAI filed its prospectus confidentially in June and is targeting a 2027 listing. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has ruled out a 2026 debut.
The new capital would help OpenAI cover its infrastructure obligations and shore up its balance sheet if a softer IPO environment pushes back the listing, according to Reuters.
