(Sept 30): SoftBank Group Corp’s Vision Fund is planning to invest US$500 million (RM2.06 billion) in OpenAI as part of a larger funding round, The Information reported on Monday, citing a person familiar with the deal.
OpenAI is in talks to raise US$6.5 billion from investors at a valuation of US$150 billion, Bloomberg previously reported. The funding round is slated to be led by Thrive Capital, with participation from Microsoft Corp, the company’s largest investor, and other backers.
Representatives of OpenAI and SoftBank declined to comment.
The funding round would cement OpenAI’s place as one of the world’s most valuable startups, but it also comes at a moment of uncertainty for the high-profile artificial intelligence (AI) company. Mira Murati, OpenAI’s chief technology officer and a key figure at the startup, announced last week that she plans to depart, adding to an exodus of senior managers this year. OpenAI is also considering restructuring to become a for-profit business, Bloomberg previously reported.
SoftBank has not previously invested in OpenAI, but the company has backed one of its rivals. In June, SoftBank’s Vision Fund invested in Perplexity AI, an AI search startup, at a US$3 billion valuation.
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