Key points
- A group of UAE funds could put in up to $10 billion
- BlackRock is also in talks to invest
- OpenAI is pitching a fixed valuation without a lead investor
OpenAI is in talks with Abu Dhabi's MGX and BlackRock (BLK) to anchor a $30 billion funding round at a valuation of about $1.4 trillion, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 5. MGX is in talks about forming a group of United Arab Emirates funds that could invest up to $10 billion combined.
OpenAI set the valuation itself and is presenting it as a fixed price, without a lead investor, The Next Web reported. In a typical round, a lead investor negotiates the price with the company.
OpenAI and BlackRock declined to comment, and MGX didn't respond. The talks are ongoing, and the terms could change.
Other investors are in talks too
The University of California's endowment has also discussed investing, as have existing OpenAI investors Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz. Thrive declined to comment, and the other two didn't respond.
The proposed round would value OpenAI at $1.4 trillion before the investment. Its previous round in March raised $122 billion at a valuation of $852 billion, including the new cash. Bloomberg reported the $30 billion fundraising target on Sept. 29.
MGX already backs OpenAI's rivals
MGX raised close to $50 billion this year and already holds stakes in OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI, The Next Web reported. It is chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, with Mubadala and G42 as founding partners.
MGX and BlackRock already run a $30 billion AI infrastructure investment vehicle with Microsoft (MSFT) and Nvidia (NVDA).
OpenAI's annualized revenue run rate was approaching $70 billion in late September, Reuters reported at the time.
