July 1, 2026

OpenAI Files Confidential IPO Registration at $852 Billion Valuation

OpenAI confirmed it filed a confidential S-1 registration with the SEC on June 8, 2026, taking its first step toward a public offering following its $852 billion March 2026 valuation.

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OpenAI confirmed on June 8, 2026 that it has confidentially filed a draft S-1 registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, taking

its first formal step toward an initial public offering following a March 2026 funding round that valued the company at $852 billion.

For more context, see our coverage of Florida Sues OpenAI Over ChatGPT Safety Claims.

Key Developments

The filing does not set a timeline or target price.

OpenAI said it has “not decided on timing yet” and that a listing “may be a while.” Industry analysts cite September to November 2026

as the earliest plausible window for a public debut, contingent on market conditions and SEC review completion.

Background and Context

For more context, see our coverage of OpenAI Spent $34 Billion in 2025.

Read also: Florida Sues OpenAI Over ChatGPT Safety Failures.

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What Experts Are Saying

For more context, see our coverage of Florida Sues OpenAI Over ChatGPT Safety Failures.

If OpenAI lists at or above its $852 billion private valuation, it would become one of the largest IPOs in US history, surpassing Saudi

For more context, see our coverage of Apple Becomes First $4 Trillion Company.

Aramco’s $25.6 billion 2019 offering and Rivian’s $13.7 billion 2021 listing in proceeds, assuming a standard float of 5-10 percent of shares.

OpenAI reported $2.6 billion in monthly recurring revenue in June 2026, an annualized rate of $31.2 billion. See also: Alphabet Raises $84 Billion for AI Infrastructure.

Revenue has roughly tripled since January 2025, driven by ChatGPT Plus and Pro subscriptions, API usage by enterprise customers, and the Microsoft partnership revenue share.

Read also: Alphabet Raises $84 Billion for AI Infrastructure.

The company closed a $122 billion funding round in March 2026 at the $852 billion valuation. Lead investors included Amazon ($50 billion), Nvidia ($30 billion), and SoftBank ($30 billion).

The round was the largest single private funding event in technology history.

ChatGPT has 900 million weekly active users globally, OpenAI disclosed in June 2026.

Enterprise customers have grown to 4 million organizations using the API or ChatGPT Enterprise, up from 600,000 in early 2024.

The strategic pivot toward enterprise clients announced June 11 is intended to accelerate margin expansion before the public offering.

A public listing requires OpenAI to complete its conversion from a capped-profit limited liability company to a standard for-profit corporation, a restructuring the company announced in late 2024.

The conversion faced objections from co-founder Elon Musk in a lawsuit that was settled in early 2026.

The non-profit entity that originally controlled OpenAI retains a significant equity stake in the new for-profit structure, estimated at 25-30 percent of shares.

The non-profit’s mission to benefit humanity remains legally enshrined in OpenAI’s corporate charter even after the conversion.

Microsoft, which has invested approximately $13 billion in OpenAI across multiple rounds, will see its stake diluted in the IPO but retain a strategic partnership providing Azure computing infrastructure.

Microsoft’s revenue share from OpenAI products generated an estimated $3.8 billion in 2025 for Microsoft.

OpenAI has filed a confidential S-1 with the SEC but has not set an IPO date.

The company said a listing “may be a while.” Analysts project September to November 2026 as the earliest plausible window, pending SEC review and market conditions.

A confidential filing gives OpenAI flexibility to withdraw if conditions deteriorate.

OpenAI’s most recent valuation is $852 billion, set during a March 2026 funding round that raised $122 billion.

At that valuation, OpenAI would rank among the 10 most valuable publicly traded companies in the US if listed today, comparable to companies like

Meta ($1.8T) and Berkshire Hathaway ($1.1T) in scale.

No. OpenAI is still a private company. Shares are only available to accredited investors through secondary market transactions on platforms like Forge Global or EquityZen, typically at significant premiums.

Retail investors will be able to buy OpenAI stock through standard brokerage accounts only after the IPO is completed and shares begin trading on a public exchange.

Sources: Reuters – Ukraine War Coverage | BBC News – Ukraine | NPR – Ukraine Invasion

Sources and Further Reading

Learn more at TechCrunch.

Learn more at The Verge.

Learn more at Wired.

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