OpenAI starts talks with Microsoft about new funding and future IPO


05/12/2025

According to the Financial Times sources, OpenAI is negotiating a new partnership agreement with Microsoft that would facilitate an IPO while safeguarding the software giant's access to cutting-edge artificial intelligence models.



Jernej Furman
Microsoft has poured over $13 billion into OpenAI, making it the biggest investor and opposing the ChatGPT creator's intentions to transform from a non-profit organization into a profit-making enterprise.

The initial agreement between OpenAI and Microsoft was established in 2019 and will conclude in 2030. It regulates access to intellectual property, product rights, and the distribution of revenue. The two firms are currently reworking the conditions of that agreement. The central concern in the negotiations is the extent of equity Microsoft will possess in a reformed OpenAI.

According to sources from the newspaper, Microsoft might relinquish some of its shares for ongoing access to OpenAI technologies post-2030.

source: ft.com