OpenAI is in early talks with investors about a potential secondary stock sale valuing the company at around $500 billion, with current and former employees selling shares.

Thrive Capital, an existing investor, may lead the round.

OpenAI’s valuation has soared since launching ChatGPT in 2022, reaching $300 billion after a $40 billion funding round earlier this year.

Recently, OpenAI released new open-weight language models and reported nearly 700 million weekly active ChatGPT users.

Meanwhile, rival Anthropic is seeking $3–5 billion in funding at a $170 billion valuation, CNBC has reported.

OpenAI’s annual recurring revenue is expected to exceed $20 billion by year-end.

Written by B.C. Begley