Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has told associates the AI company is targeting a 2027 listing, though some advisers predict it could happen sooner. The timing shows urgency to access public markets now that the company’s restructuring is complete, reducing reliance on Microsoft and clearing regulatory obstacles. CEO Sam Altman acknowledged during a livestream that an IPO is
“the most likely path for us given the capital needs.”
With an annualized revenue expected to reach $20 billion by year-end, growing losses inside the $500 billion company make efficient capital raising essential. The IPO preparations come as artificial intelligence drives record market activity, with Nvidia reaching a $5 trillion market value and AI cloud company CoreWeave tripling since its $23 billion IPO.
A successful offering would benefit investors including SoftBank, Thrive Capital, and Abu Dhabi’s MGX, while Microsoft now owns approximately 27 percent after investing $13 billion.
The Regulatory Battle
OpenAI’s path to public markets required navigating complex political negotiations with California Attorney General Rob Bonta, whose office controls nonprofit conversions. The company spent months in high-stakes negotiations that tested whether California’s tech enforcement would protect Silicon Valley’s most valuable AI startup.
OpenAI’s lobbying campaign proved extensive. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie personally called Bonta, while the company hired Democratic operatives including former Senator Laphonza Butler. Economic reports highlighted the company’s value to California’s economy, even as OpenAI reportedly subpoenaed seven advocacy groups opposing the restructuring.
More than 30 experts, including nine former OpenAI employees and AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton, pushed for intervention, warning the restructuring would eliminate governance protections. Yet Altman told Bonta that OpenAI would not “threaten to leave if sued,” positioning the company as a cooperative partner.
The Monday agreement gave California oversight while allowing OpenAI to operate as a public benefit corporation. This avoided legal battles that might have threatened the $40 billion funding round led by SoftBank. The resolution represents political pragmatism winning over regulatory principle, California chose economic momentum over extracting maximum demands.
This victory followed OpenAI’s demonstration of political sophistication. The company increased congressional lobbying spending sevenfold and opposed AI regulation bills including SB 1047, which would have required safety testing for powerful AI models. Governor Gavin Newsom ultimately vetoed the measure, siding with tech companies.
Strategic M&A Capabilities
The restructuring and upcoming IPO unlock a critical capability: using public stock as buying currency at massive scale. While competitors negotiate cash deals, a publicly traded OpenAI could deploy billions in highly valued equity to bring together capabilities across the AI stack.
OpenAI has shown aggressive buying appetite. In March, the company completed its $6.5 billion all-stock acquisition of io Products, founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive. The deal set a new record for venture-backed acquisitions by a private buyer, marking OpenAI’s entry into consumer hardware.
The acquisition spree accelerated in 2025. In September, OpenAI acquired Statsig for $1.1 billion in an all-stock deal, bringing founder Vijaye Raji as CTO of Applications. Recently, OpenAI acquired Roi, a New York fintech startup, extending reach into financial technology.
Tracxn data shows OpenAI completed seven acquisitions spanning AI infrastructure to customer success, with peak activity in 2024-2025. The company’s targets reflect deliberate strategy: combining technical infrastructure with applied AI ventures.
An IPO would dramatically increase this M&A capacity. Public stock trades at market valuations exceeding private multiples, giving buyers powerful currency. For OpenAI, valued at $1 trillion publicly, even a $10 billion acquisition represents just 1 percent dilution. Cash acquisitions draw down balance sheets and compete with operational needs like computing infrastructure.
Bloomberg observed that venture-backed startups staying private longer are becoming major acquirers using highly valued stock as currency. OpenAI’s model creates recruitment advantages for founders and employees that financial buyers cannot match.
This strategy addresses a key challenge. Rapidly integrating specialized capabilities across hardware, software, and vertical applications while foundation model standardization threatens profit margins. The $6.5 billion Jony Ive deal shows this, overnight, OpenAI acquired world-class design and hardware expertise that would take years to build internally.
The IPO timeframe, potentially late 2026, positions OpenAI to use this strategy as AI markets mature and buying opportunities peak. For startups weighing options, becoming part of a trillion-dollar public AI leader may prove increasingly attractive as capital markets tighten.
Employee Liquidity Revolution
OpenAI has pioneered what analysts describe as the largest non-founder employee wealth creation event in tech history. In August 2025, OpenAI conducted a $10.3 billion secondary share sale, expanded from $6 billion, allowing employees holding shares for two-plus years to cash out equity.
According to SaaStr analysis, this exceeded any comparable transaction in tech history, larger than the biggest 2024 IPO and representing over one-third of the entire first-half 2025 IPO market.
The transaction at OpenAI’s $500 billion valuation created instant millionaires across the organization. Yet CNBC reported concerns about the company’s power to decide who participates. Internal documents revealed OpenAI excludes ex-employees working at competitors from tender offers, causing tensions about potential retaliation through vested equity.
Despite frictions, OpenAI’s liquidity program has reset industry expectations for AI talent compensation. Morgan Stanley data shows seller participation in private company liquidity events jumped to 42 percent in 2022 from 26 percent in 2021, as companies stay private longer, with pre-IPO timelines now stretching 10-12 years versus historical 4-6 years.
Secondary market infrastructure has matured, with platforms like Nasdaq Private Market facilitating over $23 billion in transactions and Forge providing price discovery for 200 pre-IPO companies.
An IPO would make liquidity more democratic by allowing continuous trading on public exchanges rather than company-controlled tender offers. What started as a retention tool has evolved into massive wealth transfer creating multi-millionaires while establishing new compensation standards, shifting power from employer to employee through market-determined trading.
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