OpenAI: valuation, the deferred IPO and what is actually documented

By Unicorn Private Research. Published 26 September 2026, last updated 20 October 2026.

Can you buy OpenAI stock? Not on any exchange. OpenAI is private: its last completed round, announced on 31 March 2026, raised 122 billion dollars at a post-money valuation of 852 billion (CNBC). It has filed a confidential draft S-1, but its chief executive told Fortune on 12 September 2026 that it would not list in 2026 (Fortune). On 19 October 2026 Reuters reported talks to raise about 30 billion dollars above 1.4 trillion, not closed (Reuters). Until a listing, the only routes are private: secondary purchases, SPVs, funds or tender offers, open to qualified investors.

When investors ask about pre-IPO exposure, OpenAI is the name that comes up most. It is also a name where documented fact and press reports sit far apart. The last valuation at which the company actually transacted is 852 billion dollars: set by a 122 billion dollar round in March 2026, used again for the employee tender completed in August 2026. Anything above that number is reporting on conversations.

What has been reported, and by whom

Six figures are in circulation. Only the first two are transactions the company has confirmed.

Serious outlets published different numbers within days of each other. That is routine in private company reporting, where the figure depends on who in the conversation is doing the briefing. It is also a reminder of how little precision a private valuation really has. Until a new round closes, 852 billion dollars is the documented price.

Revenue, as far as it is known

On 31 March 2026 OpenAI said it was generating 2 billion dollars of revenue a month and had booked 13.1 billion dollars of revenue in 2025 (CNBC). According to a person familiar with the matter, it told investors it had reached about 50 billion dollars of annualised revenue at the end of September 2026; an earlier reported figure of 68 billion dollars included partners' gross revenue (CNBC, 8 October 2026). The first number comes from the company, the second from an investor briefing. Neither is audited.

The IPO that was ruled out, for now

On 8 June 2026 OpenAI announced its confidential S-1 submission to the SEC, adding that it had not decided on timing and that a listing could take a while (CNBC). On 12 September 2026 Sam Altman told Fortune that, given everything happening with safety, this "would be an ill-advised moment to go public", and that it would not happen in 2026 (Fortune). A new private round at a higher valuation does for the balance sheet what a listing would have done. Without the disclosure a listing demands.

If you hold or are buying OpenAI exposure, three things follow. The wait for liquidity gets longer. No audited accounts are published in the meantime. And the entry price is negotiated between very large investors, not set by a market.

What a buyer is taking on before a listing

• Price without disclosure. At 852 billion dollars, and more in any new round, you pay a price set in private, with no prospectus to check it against.
• Structure. OpenAI's capital structure was recapitalised in October 2025, and the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation is still a shareholder (Microsoft, 28 October 2025). Common stock ranks behind the preferred stock of every earlier round.
• Capital intensity. In April 2026 the chief financial officer said OpenAI plans to spend 600 billion dollars over five years on semiconductors and data centres (CNBC, 8 April 2026). That money still has to be raised; it is not a cost already paid.
• Competition. Anthropic raised at 965 billion dollars two months after OpenAI's round and is preparing its own listing (Anthropic, 28 May 2026).
• Access. You cannot buy directly. Exposure comes through the secondary market, subject to the company's consent and transfer restrictions, or indirectly through the routes below.

IPO status and how to get exposure before the IPO

OpenAI is not publicly traded, and no OpenAI share can be bought on a stock exchange. The company confirmed on 8 June 2026 that it had submitted a confidential draft S-1 to the SEC. It has set no date, and its chief executive has ruled out a listing in 2026. Until it lists, the only way to own shares directly is a private transfer the company approves. Every other route gives indirect exposure.

What is confirmed and what is reported

• Confirmed: OpenAI announced its confidential S-1 submission on 8 June 2026 and said it had not decided on timing (CNBC, 8 June 2026).
• Confirmed: Sam Altman told Fortune that OpenAI would not go public in 2026 (Fortune, 12 September 2026).
• Stated intention: the chief financial officer said OpenAI will reserve part of its IPO shares for individual investors; the size of that allocation has not been announced (CNBC, 8 April 2026).
• Reported: a listing planned for 2027, according to investors familiar with the company (Reuters, 19 October 2026). Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have been reported as working on the filing (CNBC, 8 June 2026).
• Reported: a new private round of about 30 billion dollars at a valuation above 1.4 trillion dollars, with SoftBank and MGX in talks, according to two people familiar with the matter. It has not closed (Reuters, 19 October 2026).

Routes to exposure before a listing, and their limits

• Secondary purchase of existing shares. Brokers and platforms match buyers with shareholders who want to sell, mostly current and former employees. Buyers usually have to qualify as accredited or institutional investors, the company has to approve the transfer, and OpenAI has said it will not recognise sales that get around its transfer restrictions (TechCrunch, 23 August 2025).
• SPVs and tokenised products. A special purpose vehicle pools several investors into one holding. You own a slice of the vehicle, not OpenAI shares, you pay its fees, and you depend on the transfer into the vehicle having been approved. OpenAI has issued a specific warning about unauthorised SPV offers (TechCrunch, 23 August 2025).
• Bank channels in a primary round. In the round closed in March 2026 OpenAI let investors in through banks for the first time and raised 3 billion dollars from individuals (CNBC, 31 March 2026). These were private placements for eligible bank clients, not a public offer.
• Funds. A few funds open to a wider investor base, including interval funds, report holdings in OpenAI. They charge fees, and an interval fund buys back shares only periodically.
• Listed shareholders. After the October 2025 recapitalisation Microsoft held about 27% of OpenAI Group PBC on an as-converted diluted basis (Microsoft, 28 October 2025). In the 2026 round Amazon agreed to invest up to 50 billion dollars and SoftBank put in 30 billion dollars (CNBC, 31 March 2026). Their shares trade publicly, but OpenAI is only one piece of what their shareholders own.
• Club deals. Unicorn Club, the investor club of Unicorn Private, offers club deals in OpenAI through a dedicated vehicle (SPV), for accredited and qualified investors, from 100,000 dollars.
• Tender offers. Reserved for current and former employees. The latest, about 7 billion dollars at 852 billion dollars, closed in August 2026; the one before, in October 2025, was 6.6 billion dollars at 500 billion dollars (CNBC, 10 August 2026).

Unicorn Private works in the secondary segment. It buys stakes in established private technology companies already valued well above one billion dollars, rather than funding early-stage companies, most of which fail. What remains is the entry price, the lack of a guaranteed exit and the time it takes to get one, and the size of the company does not make those risks go away. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy or sell any security.

The short answer

OpenAI's documented valuation is 852 billion dollars, set in March 2026 and used again for the August 2026 employee tender. The reports of about 1.4 trillion dollars describe a round still being negotiated, not a price. A confidential S-1 sits with the SEC, but the company has ruled out a listing in 2026. Until then, direct ownership goes through private transfers the company approves, and there are no public audited accounts.

Frequently asked questions

Is OpenAI publicly traded?

No. OpenAI is a private company with no stock exchange listing and no ticker. It confirmed a confidential S-1 submission to the SEC on 8 June 2026 but has not set a date (CNBC, 8 June 2026).

When is the OpenAI IPO?

No date has been announced. Sam Altman said on 12 September 2026 that OpenAI would not go public in 2026 (Fortune). Reuters reported on 19 October 2026 that the company plans a 2027 listing, citing investors familiar with it (Reuters); that is a report, not an announcement.

Can you buy OpenAI stock?

Not on a stock exchange. Before a listing, shares change hands only through private transfers the company approves, generally limited to accredited or institutional investors, and OpenAI says unapproved sales are not recognised (TechCrunch, 23 August 2025). Indirect exposure exists through some funds and through listed shareholders such as Microsoft.

What is OpenAI's latest valuation?

The last confirmed valuation is 852 billion dollars post-money, set by a 122 billion dollar round announced on 31 March 2026 (CNBC). Reuters reported on 19 October 2026 talks on about 30 billion dollars at a valuation above 1.4 trillion dollars (Reuters); that round has not closed.

How much of OpenAI does Microsoft own?

About 27% of OpenAI Group PBC on an as-converted diluted basis, a stake Microsoft valued at about 135 billion dollars on 28 October 2025 (Microsoft). Other owners include the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation, employees and investors such as SoftBank.

How much revenue does OpenAI make?

OpenAI told investors it reached about 50 billion dollars of annualised revenue at the end of September 2026, according to a person familiar with the matter (CNBC, 8 October 2026). In March 2026 the company said it was generating 2 billion dollars a month and had 13.1 billion dollars of revenue in 2025 (CNBC, 31 March 2026). Audited figures will appear only in a public prospectus.

Related guides

• How to invest in OpenAI, Anthropic, Stripe and Databricks before an IPO
• How to value a private unicorn
• How pre-IPO risk compares with venture capital risk
• Anthropic: valuation, revenue and the road to an IPO
• ByteDance: a valuation set in the secondary market, and the TikTok question answered
• Databricks: 190 billion dollars, a 7 billion revenue run-rate, and the multiple that follows
• Unicorn tracker
• Unicorn Club

Sources

1. OpenAI IPO looks like a no-go: Sam Altman is discussing a new round of VC funding valuing the company at $1.2 trillion, Fortune, 16 September 2026
2. OpenAI is reportedly weighing new funding round at $1.5 trillion valuation, Forbes, 16 Sep 2026
3. List of unicorn startup companies, Wikipedia
4. OpenAI closes funding round at an $852 billion valuation, CNBC, 31 March 2026
5. OpenAI will allocate IPO shares to retail investors as it preps for debut, CFO says, CNBC, 8 April 2026
6. OpenAI confidentially files for IPO, prepping Wall Street for mega AI debut, CNBC, 8 June 2026
7. OpenAI wraps $7 billion share sale ahead of potential IPO, CNBC, 10 August 2026
8. Sam Altman confirms OpenAI won't go public this year, Fortune, 12 September 2026
9. OpenAI reportedly in talks to raise $30B round at $1.4T valuation, TechCrunch, 29 September 2026
10. Nvidia, Oracle, CoreWeave and other AI stocks sink on OpenAI revenue report, CNBC, 8 October 2026
11. OpenAI seeks to accelerate fundraising ahead of Anthropic IPO, sources say, Reuters, 19 October 2026
12. The next chapter of the Microsoft and OpenAI partnership, Microsoft, 28 October 2025
13. OpenAI warns against SPVs and other 'unauthorized' investments, TechCrunch, 23 August 2025
14. How to own SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic stock before an IPO, The Motley Fool, 8 April 2026
15. Anthropic raises $65B Series H at $965B valuation, Anthropic, 28 May 2026