Bloomberg reports that OpenAI is on the verge of completing a $40 billion funding injection. To put the funding in perspective, Nicaragua’s annual GPD is approximately $17 billion, while Iceland’s comes in at around $33 billion USD.
According to the report, the fresh funding is being provided by SoftBank Group Corp. — along with Magnetar Capital, Coatue Management, Founders Fund, and Altimeter Capital Management in talks to participate, according to people familiar with the matter.
If this funding deal is completed, the capital infusion into OpenAI would be the largest of all time, according to data compiled by research firm PitchBook and reported by Bloomberg. The funding would value the company at $300 billion, just under the total GDP of countries like South Africa and more than Portugal’s.
OpenAI’s ChatGPT captured the public imagination when it first stormed onto the scene two years ago. It allows specific searches that serve up a cocktail of specific AI-infused answers (that sometimes miss the mark). It has also spawned fierce competition, with Google (GOOGL-1.38%) increasingly vying in the space and China’s DeepSeek becoming a big player. An ‘arms race’ of sorts is developing with each company trying to outdo the other, ChatGPT recently unveiled new tools using AI to create graphics.
The Trump administration came into the office announcing the creation on the Stargate project, underscoring the importance of AI on the national agenda. Stargate includes building up to 20 sprawling AI data centers in the US, with an initial investment of $100 billion and plans for up to $500 billion by 2029.
Britney Nguyen contributed to this report.
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