OpenAI raises $8.3 billion as paid ChatGPT users reach 5 million
The fresh capital comes as the artificial intelligence company's business accelerates.
Annual recurring revenue jumped to $13 billion, up from $10 billion in June, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential financial information, and is projected to top $20 billion by year-end.
Paid business users of ChatGPT have climbed to five million from three million just months ago, they said. The round was completed ahead of schedule and was five times oversubscribed.
DealBook was first to report the transaction.
The raise underscores surging investor appetite for AI platforms as competition intensifies among leading model makers.
Dragoneer Investment Group contributed $2.8 billion to the round, the person said, joining Blackstone, TPG, T. Rowe Price, Fidelity, Founders Fund, Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, Coatue, Altimeter, D1 Capital, Tiger Global, and Thrive Capital.
While Dragoneer was the largest investor in this latest tranche of funding, SoftBank remains the lead backer of the broader $40 billion fundraising effort.
Rivals are also raising massive sums.
Anthropic, one of OpenAI's chief competitors, is in talks to secure between $3 billion and $5 billion in new funding led by Iconiq Capital at a potential $170 billion valuation, CNBC confirmed. That follows a $3.5 billion round in March that valued the startup at $61.5 billion.
Both OpenAI and Anthropic are courting Middle Eastern capital to finance their ambitions.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently signaled a willingness to reverse his previous stance against Gulf sovereign wealth funds, warning in a leaked memo shared with Wired that it's become "substantially harder to stay on the frontier" of AI development without tapping that money.
OpenAI, meanwhile, is working with Emirati firm G42 to build a massive data center in Abu Dhabi.
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15 minutes ago
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If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or a suicidal crisis, you can reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. You can also chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline here. For more information about mental health care resources and support, The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.–10 p.m. ET, at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or email info@
