One of the major symbols behind the artificial intelligence (AI) frenzy, OpenAI has further piqued market interest with its plans to go public this year. But, by all indications, investors will have to wait a little longer for the offering.
That, at least, is the information from The New York Times . According to the American newspaper, which cites sources close to the company, the owner of ChatGPT is inclined to postpone its initial public offering of shares until 2027.
If this listing reversal is confirmed, the move would come just weeks after OpenAI filed a confidential application with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its IPO in the United States. This formality was completed earlier this month.
As part of this process, the company hired banks and law firms aiming for an IPO in the third or fourth quarter of this year. To that end, Sam Altman , co-founder and CEO of the company, pressed the consultants to find a path to a $1 trillion valuation.
This amount would surpass the valuation of US$730 billion reached in February, when the company raised a round of US$110 billion, with funds injected by companies such as Amazon, Softbank, and Nvidia.
Several factors help explain why OpenAI is considering recalculating this roadmap. The main one is SpaceX . On June 11, Elon Musk's company registered the largest IPO of all time, raising US$75 billion and reaching a market value of US$1.77 trillion.
However, after reaching a peak of US$201.80 on June 16, SpaceX shares entered a downward trend. Since then, taking into account the trading session on Thursday, June 25, the shares have registered a drop of more than 24%.
Elsewhere, global markets have also experienced instability, with technology stocks pushing indices down. The main reason is investor questioning of the promises made by AI companies.
This context was discussed in meetings last week and led OpenAI's advisors on the listing to warn about the possibility of there not being much enthusiasm from retail investors regarding the company's shares.
If this advice is followed, OpenAI's decision to put the brakes on its IPO could disappoint Wall Street. In the view of investors, the listing of the company, and also of Anthropic , its biggest rival, were among the top bets to revive this market.
In this scenario, OpenAI consultants presented executives with the option of waiting until 2027 to go public with the trillion-dollar valuation the company aims for. Or, as a second alternative, to reduce that ambition for a faster IPO.
However, according to sources cited by The New York Times , this second option was rejected by Altman, who reportedly responded that any change in the $1 trillion valuation was out of the question.
Whichever path is chosen, the fact is that a market value of US$1 trillion would be impressive for a company that, by all indications, has not yet turned a profit and continues to invest heavily in its operations.
At the same time, this appetite contrasts with the speech given by Sarah Friar, the company's CFO, at the end of 2025. At the time, the executive said that OpenAI was not seeking an IPO because it was focused on balancing its finances.
From theory to practice, OpenAI has been disproving this claim. The company continues to invest in areas such as data centers, computing power, marketing, and hiring top professionals from rivals like Meta and Google. And it has shown no signs of stopping this investment.
In parallel, the company has been seeking other sources of revenue, a strategy that includes areas such as inserting advertising within ChatGPT and agreements with companies like Shopify and Stripe, which have allowed users to buy products directly within the tool.
In this regard, sources said that OpenAI reported revenue of approximately US$13 trillion in 2025, and that the projection is to triple that figure in 2026.
While pursuing these numbers, the company has also faced difficulties competing with Anthropic, whose platforms have been gaining increasing market share in the corporate sector. Meanwhile, among consumers, Google's Gemini has been making inroads.
