Amazon is in talks to make a bumper investment of up to $50 billion in OpenAI, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal, as the tech giant seeks to accelerate its artificial intelligence ambitions.
OpenAI is thought to be preparing for an IPO later this year, and the race is on for the firm to be the first pure-play foundational AI model firm to list, with Anthropic also reported to be preparing for an IPO.
The potential deal would make Amazon the largest investor in OpenAI’s ongoing fundraising round, which is reportedly targeting up to $100 billion. The round could value the ChatGPT creator OpenAI at an eye-watering $830 billion. OpenAI is currently valued at $500 billion.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is personally leading negotiations with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman, though the exact structure of any agreement remains fluid and could still change, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
Should the round value OpenAI at $830 billion, it would set the firm on a path for an IPO at a valuation of over $1 trillion – Saudi Aramco, valued at $1.7 trillion at the time of listing, is the only company to date that has listed with a valuation of more than $1 trillion.
But OpenAI isn’t alone in targeting a $1 trillion valuation on IPO. Elon Musk has touted a $1 trillion valuation for SpaceX on IPO while the FT reported recently that the valuation could be as high as $1.5 trillion.
