Word is that OpenAI, the cutting-edge artificial intelligence company that gave us ChatGPT and some other astonishing technologies, is looking to raise a huge sum of money—up to $40 billion, by some counts. Among the involved investors are some very interesting names:
- $inc.
- The Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia
- Reliance Industries of India
- MGX, the UAE-backed group.
This funding opportunity correlates strongly with our ambition to put OpenAI squarely in the space of one of the main artificial intelligence research and deployment organizations, alongside the major tech companies.
We have an impressive set of investors. To address the growing demand for all sorts of AI capabilities, we feel we have to tackle the problem of funding head on by raising even more money, probably in the range of tens of hundreds of millions of dollars.
OpenAI in talks for $40n fundraise with Saudi PIF
Investing in companies with a focus on longer-term strategic growth, while also diversifying its investment portfolio. This is what Saudi Arabia’s PIF is doing.
Still, with its anticipated participation, the PIF’s alignment with the Kingdom’s long-term Vision 2030—a plan heavily focused on diversification and technological innovation—becomes evident.
In the time since the PIF’s initial decision to invest in Reliance Industries, Mukesh Ambani and his company have continued to signal an intention to promote high-tech applications,.
making themselves a key actor in the development and application of AI, both in India and throughout much of the South Asian region.
Although discussions are at an early stage, the expected scale and ambition of the capital-raising exercise have already grabbed the global financial markets and industry analysts’ attention.
If this transaction works out, not only will it throw OpenAI a newfound wealth of financial resources, but it will also suggest that, as the world of artificial intelligence matures, the need for more collaboration across national borders is apparent.