AI news · OpenAI · funding round
OpenAI cuts its funding target to $20 billion, reports say
The ChatGPT maker has about $11 billion committed so far, the Wall Street Journal reports, after the Financial Times reported the lower target.
OpenAI has lowered the target for its latest funding round to about $20 billion, from the $30 billion it first sought, the Financial Times reported on 30 October 2026, Bloomberg relays. The round now values OpenAI at $1.25 trillion; the first pitch was $1.4 trillion. Some investors cut what they had pledged before the Friday deadline, and the first close is expected to land below $20 billion.
In a follow-up report, the Wall Street Journal put the money committed so far at about $11 billion and described interest from some large investors as tepid, TechCrunch reports. OpenAI told shareholders it expects to raise more from family offices and wealthy individuals, The Next Web adds. According to the FT, investors from the United Arab Emirates, among them the state-backed fund MGX, are set to be the largest backers, and Andreessen Horowitz, Coatue, Founders Fund, Sequoia and SoftBank also plan to invest.
Bloomberg and TechCrunch tie the cut partly to a sell-off in AI and tech shares and to Anthropic’s plan to list next month. OpenAI raised $122 billion in March.
OpenAI’s cheapest paid plan already makes room for advertising. On our 31 October check, the card for ChatGPT Go, its cheapest paid plan, reads “This plan may include ads”.
None of the reports links the smaller round to OpenAI’s ad plans, so for advertisers the hard facts stay these two: investors trimmed their pledges at a $1.25 trillion valuation, and the Go plan already says it may carry ads.
Sources
- TechCrunch: OpenAI reportedly lowers funding target for new round. Checked
- The Next Web: OpenAI cuts its funding round to $20bn after raising $11bn, WSJ reports. Checked
- Bloomberg via Yahoo Finance: OpenAI Funding Target Cut by $10 Billion as AI Slumps, FT Says. Checked
Alexandre S.
Alexandre S. is a creative ad strategist and copywriter with ten years' experience in digital marketing across multiple channels.
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