OpenAI Completes Record $59 Trillion Investment, Valuation Reaches $442 Trillion
Summary
- OpenAI reported that it secured $40 billion from SoftBank and other investors, doubling its valuation in just five months.
- The investment was made as part of the 'Stargate' project to expand AI infrastructure in the United States over the next four years.
- Major companies participating in the investment reportedly include Microsoft, Altimeter Management, and Thrive Capital.
OpenAI has secured an investment worth $40 billion (approximately 59 trillion won), the largest in history. This funding has nearly doubled the company's valuation in just five months.
On the 31st (local time), OpenAI announced that it had secured a $40 billion investment from SoftBank and other investors. With this investment, OpenAI's valuation has surged to $300 billion, nearly doubling from its valuation of $157 billion last October. This is the largest single investment in venture history. Sam Altman, OpenAI's CEO, stated, "Hundreds of millions of people are using ChatGPT every week," and "This investment will play a crucial role in making AI more useful in everyday life."
This investment was made as part of the 'Stargate' project, which plans to invest $500 billion over the next four years to expand AI infrastructure in the United States. The investment was led by OpenAI and Japan's SoftBank, which is part of the Stargate project. Although OpenAI stated that it had secured investments from SoftBank and other investors without specifying them, Bloomberg reported, citing sources, that a consortium including Microsoft, Altimeter Management, and Thrive Capital participated in the investment.
Altman also announced the upcoming release of an 'Open Weight' inference model that will disclose some code. Open Weight refers to a method of disclosing some code and AI training weights, unlike open source, where the entire program blueprint is fully open. Users can download it for free and make some modifications for use. This is the first time OpenAI has disclosed AI sources since GPT-2 in 2019. Previously, in January, Altman hinted at the possibility of transitioning to open source, saying, "We were on the wrong side of history" in response to the shock from China's DeepSeek. He stated, "Before releasing this model, we will thoroughly evaluate it based on safety and usefulness, as with other models."
Silicon Valley Correspondent Song Young-chan 0full@hankyung.com
Korea Economic Daily
hankyung@bloomingbit.ioThe Korea Economic Daily Global is a digital media where latest news on Korean companies, industries, and financial markets.
