Share sale deal values OpenAI at R499 billion

3 years ago 2

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OpenAI, the artificial intelligence lab that developed the viral ChatGPT chatbot and Dall-E image generator, is in talks to sell shares in a tender offering valuing the company at about $29 billion (R499 billion), the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Venture capital firms Thrive Capital and Founders Fund are in discussions to invest in the deal, which would include the sale of at least $300 million (R5 billion) of shares from existing investors such as employees, the Journal said.

The transaction would almost double the company’s valuation from a tender offer in 2021 and would make it one of the most valuable US startups on paper despite having little revenue, the paper said.

Existing backers of OpenAI include Microsoft Corp., which has invested $1 billion (R17 billion) in the organisation.

Last month, Reuters reported that OpenAI was forecasting $200 million in revenue this year and $1 billion annually by 2024 and was most recently valued at $20 billion (R344 billion).

The company, co-founded by Elon Musk and Silicon Valley investor Sam Altman, makes money by charging developers to license its technology.

Microsoft, for example, is preparing to add ChatGPT to its Bing search engine, a person familiar with the matter said earlier this week, in a bid to lure users from rival Google by offering more conversational replies to queries.