On Nov. 13, CNBC reported that OpenAI has just finalized a new private financing round of $15 billion (about RMB 100.3 billion), pushing its pre-money valuation to a new high of $1.25 trillion (about RMB 8.36 trillion), well above the roughly $11 billion previously rumored. But the shiny numbers cannot hide the cracks: The Wall Street Journal shows that its revenue in the third quarter of this year was about $10 billion, up nearly 50% quarter over quarter, while its operating loss during the same period surged to $10.9 billion, worse than $10.1 billion in the second quarter. Although its adjusted operating margin narrowed from about -150% to -109%, it remains deeply mired in negative territory.
Stockpiling ammunition for a 2027 IPO This round has been characterized within the industry as "opportunistic financing." The deal has not officially closed and is expected to be finalized within weeks. On the surface, the purpose is to prepare ammunition in advance for an IPO expected to launch in 2027. Heavy-asset investments in model training, inference services, and data centers leave this star company far from being self-sustaining, forcing it to rely on external capital infusions until the day it reaches the public markets.
Racing Anthropic to go public The real rival is right nearby. Anthropic is preparing to list on Nasdaq and plans to ring the opening bell on Nov. 19. Reuters says its IPO valuation cap is about $1.4 trillion (about RMB 9.36 trillion). The two companies use inconsistent definitions for stock-based compensation, charitable spending, and other items, so directly comparing profit margins requires caution; but as they successively go public, investors will finally be able to compare their revenue growth and cash-burn efficiency head-to-head through their financial statements.
