OpenAI’s latest funding round was so popular early investors were reportedly miffed about being pushed aside to make room for new partners
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OpenAI just scored another $8.3 billion thanks to new investors, including a $2.8 billion check from Marc Stad's Dragoneer Investment Group.
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August 1, 2025
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Fortune
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Finance·OpenAIOpenAI’s funding round was so early investors were reportedly miffed being pushed aside to make room for new partnersBy Dave SmithBy Dave SmithEditor, U.S
NewsDave SmithEditor, U.S
NewsDave Smith is a writer and editor who previously has been published in Insider, Newsweek, ABC News, and USA TODAY.SEE FULL BIO OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is sitting pretty right now.Kevin Dietsch—Getty ImagesOpenAI just raised $8.3 billion in a fresh round led by Dragoneer Investment Group
The AI startup is well on its way to raising $40 billion by year’s end
Back in March, OpenAI announced a plan to raise up to $40 billion at a $300 billion valuation by the end of the year, with $10 billion becoming immediately available (thanks to SoftBank, which footed 75% of the bill), and the remaining $30 billion arriving by the end of the year
On Friday, OpenAI made strong headway on its financial plans, raising another $8.3 billion at that same $300 billion valuation, The New York Times’ DealBook was first to report
Demand for the round was off the charts—it was five times overd, according to the NYT—which meant many early investors participating in the new round were reportedly frustrated by getting smaller allocations so OpenAI could prioritize new backers
OpenAI’s fundraising round was led by Marc Stad‘s Dragoneer Investment Group, an early investor in Spotify and Uber
Dragoneer wrote a massive $2.8 billion check, which means OpenAI now represents roughly 10% of the firm’s funds
The round also included new investors, including T
Rowe Price, as well as a pair of giants from the private-equity world, TPG and BlackStone
Other participants in the round included Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, Fidelity Management, Thrive Capital, D1 Capital Partners, Coatue Management, and Tiger Global
The New York Times’ DealBook reports OpenAI’s annual recurring revenue, which was reported as $10 billion in June, now exceeds $13 billion just two months later, and may pass the $20 billion mark by year’s end
To offer some context: Anthropic, OpenAI’s nearest rival in terms of revenue and capital raised, has $14.3 billion in lifetime fundraising, and its valuation is $61.5 billion as of March—though it is currently in talks to raise another $5 billion at a $170 billion valuation
Perplexity AI, another rival, raised $100 million last month, bringing its valuation to $18 billion
Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, has raised $10 billion at a reported $80 billion valuation, though current fundraising efforts could bring that number up to $200 billion
Of course, all of this money brings OpenAI closer to an initial public offering
The company is currently in the midst of restructuring itself to become a for-fit company (which requires a green light from Microsoft), so there is still no announced timeline for an IPO
But the round means OpenAI has raised more than any other AI company by a wide margin, which gives it the upper hand in the red-hot sector
OpenAI might face a true challenge, though, from some of the more established Silicon Valley giants, including Meta
CEO Mark Zuckerberg is pouring billions into AI resources, including talent; its $72 billion AI infrastructure spend is almost 80% higher than OpenAI’s entire fundraising round this year
Meta is also the sixth-most valuable company in the world with a market cap apaching $2 trillion
OpenAI did not wish to further on the news, or on its future plans
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