OpenAI, the parent company of ChatGPT, wants to close a funding round of up to $30 billion. According to sources cited by CNBC and picked up by Journal du Coin on October 24, 2026, the valuation used is $1,250 billion. On September 29, the company was still asking for around $1,400 billion. The discount reaches $150 billion, as Wall Street punishes spending on artificial intelligence (AI).
What we know about OpenAI's fundraising
The round is led by the American fund Coatue and by investors from the United Arab Emirates. On Thursday, October 22, 2026, OpenAI told them it was aiming for signatures "by the end of next week". The final amount is not set: $30 billion is a ceiling.
The $1,250 billion is understood before the new money comes in, a so-called pre-money valuation. Once the $30 billion is paid in, OpenAI would be worth at most $1,280 billion. Our article on calculating pre-money valuation explains how this works.
Part of the Emirati money could be tied to a commercial agreement. It would give OpenAI more computing capacity in the Emirates. The company has announced to its investors some $600 billion in computing spending by 2030.
What is reported, what is confirmed
Most of the figures come from anonymous sources, not from OpenAI. Journal du Coin cites no company statement on the price or the amount. Here is where each piece of information comes from:
- Reported by CNBC, citing sources close to the talks: the raise of at most $30 billion, the $1,250 billion valuation, the lead investors and the timetable.
- Reported by Bloomberg on September 29, 2026: a request for at least $30 billion at around $1,400 billion before investment. On October 6, the agency described this price as fixed and non-negotiable.
- Reported by Bloomberg on October 6, 2026: the Abu Dhabi fund MGX and other Emirati funds were considering contributing up to $10 billion combined.
- Attributed to OpenAI's leadership: its chief financial officer Sarah Friar mentioned a listing in 2027 to employees in August. Sam Altman ruled out any immediate stock market listing in September.
- Presented as established by the source: OpenAI has already filed a confidential application with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), the US stock market regulator.
How should OpenAI's valuation be put in context?
The discount brings OpenAI below its September ambitions, but above its last funding round. The table brings together the valuations cited by Journal du Coin, in billions of dollars.
| Company | Transaction | Date | Valuation | Nature of the figure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | Previous round | March 2026 | 852 | After investment, transaction closed |
| OpenAI | Asking price | September 29, 2026 | About 1,400 | Before investment, reported by Bloomberg |
| OpenAI | Price under negotiation | October 2026 | 1,250 (at most 1,280 after) | Before investment, reported by CNBC |
| Anthropic | 65 billion raise | May 2026 | 965 | Transaction closed |
| Anthropic | Planned listing | Before November 26, 2026, hoped for | 1,500 to 2,000 | Target reported by Reuters |
| SpaceX | IPO, 75 billion raised | June 12, 2026 | 1,770 | IPO price, 135 dollars per share |
Even trimmed, existing shares are worth 47% more than in March, according to Journal du Coin's calculation. The transaction therefore remains an up round in the usual sense: the new pre-money valuation exceeds the post-money valuation of the previous round. The price per share, which would allow the other measure, has not been published.
OpenAI's ranking could, however, change. If Anthropic, the creator of Claude, went public at the targeted price, it would overtake OpenAI by at least $200 billion. The Wall Street Journal mentions up to $100 billion raised in this listing.
An AI bubble on the stock market? What the week showed
The raise is being negotiated in a market that is nervous about AI infrastructure spending. On the evening of Wednesday, October 21, 2026, Meta raised the bottom of its 2026 capital expenditure range. It goes from $130 billion to $135 billion, with the ceiling unchanged at $145 billion.
Meta's accounts explain the investors' reaction. Its free cash flow fell to -$2.12 billion in the third quarter of 2026, compared with +$10.63 billion a year earlier. The group is also preparing a new class of non-voting shares to finance what comes next.
On Thursday, October 22, 2026, Meta shares lost nearly 7%. The Nasdaq fell 2.6%, CoreWeave about 10% and Nvidia more than 4%. "More spending, negative cash flow, not enough revenue generated by that spending," Robert Pavlik (Dakota Wealth) summed up to Reuters.
The link between this climate and OpenAI's discount remains Journal du Coin's interpretation. OpenAI has not publicly explained the cut in its price. Nor do our sources make it possible to decide whether the AI market is a bubble.
The timetable also weighs on demand. Between June and the end of November 2026, SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI could have raised up to $205 billion. These transactions draw on the same portfolios as other risk assets, crypto included.
Which Swiss stocks are exposed to AI demand?
In Switzerland, the exposure shows up mainly among industrial suppliers, and it remains indirect. The third-quarter 2026 releases give two examples, with no established link to OpenAI.
- ABB: orders jumped 40% in the third quarter, to $12.06 billion, according to figures published on October 20, 2026. The Zurich-based group says demand from data centres more than doubled year on year. The details are in our ABB quarterly results.
- Comet: third-quarter 2026 revenue grew 51.9%, to 155.6 million francs. Orders rose 170%, to 275.6 million, driven by the recovery in semiconductors. Our article details these Comet quarterly sales.
- Huber+Suhner, by contrast: its orders for the first nine months of 2026 fell 0.8%, and our sources do not link it to semiconductors.
Neither ABB nor Comet puts a figure on the share of AI in their orders. As our economic barometer of October 21 noted, these releases do not allow us to conclude that there is a broad recovery among Swiss suppliers.
What this discount signals to investors
A private valuation remains a price negotiated between a few investors, not a stock market price. OpenAI is not listed: for a saver in Switzerland, its price can only be read in negotiations reported by the press. Listed AI-related stocks, on the other hand, reacted on October 22, 2026.
The signal lies above all in the speed of the change. A price described as firm on October 6 lost about 11% in a little over three weeks. For anyone considering investing in artificial intelligence, this figure describes a balance of power, not a recommendation. 2clics gives no investment advice.
What we do not know yet
- The final amount of the raise and the actual date of the signatures.
- The share of the Emirati money tied to an agreement on computing capacity.
- The price per share and the terms granted to the new investors.
- The publication of Anthropic's prospectus: Yahoo Finance mentioned it as early as Friday, October 23, 2026, without confirmation in our source.
- The share of AI demand in ABB's and Comet's orders.
