OpenAI Expands Secondary Share Sale to $10.3 Billion

OpenAI has significantly increased the size of its secondary share sale, raising it by over $4 billion, as per information from CNBC.

This expansion allows current and former OpenAI employees to sell approximately $10.3 billion in stocks, which is a marked rise from the initially planned $6 billion, according to a person familiar with the situation but insists on remaining anonymous due to sensitive details.

The shares in this transaction are expected to be sold at a valuation that meets the predicted market benchmarks, with OpenAI receiving a valuation earlier this year of about $300 billion.

Employees were presented with this offer on Wednesday, with those owning shares for more than two years given until the end of September to decide to engage in the sales process. The deal is anticipated to be finalized in October.

Investors participating in this sale include entities such as SoftBank, Dragoneer Investment Group, Thrive Capital, MGX from Abu Dhabi, and T. Rowe Price.

OpenAI is part of an exclusive group of advanced tech startups that provide occasional avenues for their workforce to liquidate shares, bypassing the necessity to enter public markets. This practice mirrors efforts made by companies like SpaceX, Stripe, and Databricks to offer liquidity options to employees.

Last November, OpenAI allowed staff to divest a significant volume of shares through a tender offer associated with SoftBank.