OpenAI has finalized a historic $40 billion funding round led by SoftBank Group, valuing the AI powerhouse at $300 billion and establishing it as one of the world's most valuable private companies, behind only SpaceX at $350 billion and on par with ByteDance.
The investment, the largest private tech funding round on record, nearly doubles OpenAI's previous valuation of $157 billion from October 2024. SoftBank is contributing $30 billion, with Microsoft, Coatue, Altimeter, and Thrive Capital also participating. However, the deal includes a significant caveat: SoftBank's investment could be reduced if OpenAI fails to restructure into a for-profit entity by year-end.
The funding will support OpenAI's ambitious growth plans, with approximately $18 billion allocated to Stargate, a joint infrastructure project with SoftBank and Oracle announced by President Trump in January. The initiative aims to establish a network of AI data centers across the United States.
OpenAI's explosive growth continues unabated, with CEO Sam Altman announcing the platform now serves 500 million weekly active users, up from 400 million in February. The company expects revenue to triple to $12.7 billion by the end of 2025, compared to $3.7 billion in 2024.
Amid this remarkable expansion, OpenAI is actively combating misuse of its technology. Ben Nimmo, principal investigator on OpenAI's intelligence and investigations team, revealed that Chinese propagandists are using ChatGPT to generate social media content across platforms including TikTok, X, Reddit, and Facebook. In one operation dubbed "Sneer Review," actors created posts and comments in multiple languages, even generating performance reviews documenting their propaganda efforts.
"What we're seeing from China is a growing range of covert operations using a growing range of tactics," Nimmo said. The company has disrupted ten malicious operations in the past three months, though Nimmo noted these efforts were identified early and had limited real-world impact.