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OpenAI working on new $30B raise at $1.25T valuation ahead of IPO

RumorFundingOct 22, 2026

OpenAI is negotiating a private round of as much as $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation, with Coatue and UAE investors leading, CNBC reports; Bloomberg earlier cited a $1.4 trillion figure. Terms remain unsettled, and OpenAI declined comment. A raise above $1 trillion would make it the most valued private company ever, ahead of its confidential June IPO filing. Anthropic, also IPO-bound, reportedly targets $1.5–$2 trillion.

Why it matters

OpenAI is reportedly pursuing a large private funding round instead of rushing to a public listing, according to sources cited by CNBC. Coatue and investors from the United Arab Emirates would lead the round, and the UAE money could be paired with an arrangement giving OpenAI additional computing capacity there. Bloomberg reported a similar effort earlier with an even higher valuation, and both outlets caution that terms remain under negotiation and could shift. OpenAI declined to comment. If the round closes above a trillion-dollar valuation, OpenAI would become the most highly valued private company in history, and it would set a lofty benchmark for its planned stock market debut, for which confidential paperwork was filed in June. The article also situates the move within a broader race: Anthropic, seen as close to its own public filing, is reportedly seeking an even larger valuation for its debut. The story matters because it shows how leading AI labs are using enormous private capital to delay IPOs while setting record expectations.

Receipt № 25361 source · awaiting confirmation ◐

Evidence

1source· awaiting independent confirmation

No score is assigned. Sources and their independence are shown in the citation chain below.

Citation chain · 1 source

01high
techcrunch.comOfficialhttps://techcrunch.com/2026/10/22/openai-working-on-new-30b-raise-at-1-25t-valuation-ahead-of-ipo/CNBC's sourcing adds that the UAE investment may be tied to a deal expanding OpenAI's computing capacity in the UAE, a detail absent from earlier Bloomberg reporting.
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OpenAICompanyChatGPTModelAnthropicCompanyTechCrunchCompanyBloombergCompanyCNBCCompanyCoatueCompany

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Canonical: https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/22/openai-working-on-new-30b-raise-at-1-25t-valuation-ahead-of-ipo/