OpenAI closes $11 billion at a $1.25 trillion valuation as Anthropic nears its IPO
From the AI digest for Nov 6, 2026
What happened: OpenAI has closed the first $11 billion of a $20 billion raise at a $1.25 trillion valuation, per Bloomberg, relayed by The Verge — a level that would make it one of the world's most valuable companies, not long after $122 billion raised in March at an $852 billion valuation. Bloomberg says OpenAI is still pursuing additional investments to reach the $20 billion total, and that it had initially hoped to raise as much as $30 billion at $1.4 trillion — before tech stocks dropped and the midterm results showed how much public opinion has turned against AI companies and data-center projects. The milestone lands as Anthropic filed its S-1 to go public last week and prepares investor marketing; OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said earlier this year his company is holding off on an IPO until it can make more confident claims about its models' safety, though "it's also kind of bad for the world if OpenAI waits too long to go public."
What's genuinely new: the round's closing confirmed by two outlets. The $11 billion first tranche and the $1.25 trillion valuation, previously reported at a single briefing tier, now have full write-through coverage — against an originally sought $30 billion at $1.4 trillion that tech-stock weakness and midterm sentiment forced down.
Watch: the remaining roughly $9 billion closing in the coming weeks; whether OpenAI sets an IPO timeline as Anthropic's listing proceeds; and the next valuation print after the tech-stock drop.
Links: The Verge · The Information, relaying Bloomberg · Nov 6, 6:46 PM ET
More context: OpenAI has closed roughly $11 billion of a new funding round that values it at $1.25 trillion, which would make it one of the world's most valuable companies, not long after it raised $122 billion in March at an $852 billion valuation (The Verge). The round was scaled back from an original target of up to $30 billion at a $1.4 trillion valuation after tech stocks dropped and midterm results showed how far public opinion had turned against AI companies and data-center projects (The Verge). The post-midterm selloff pushed the Nasdaq into a correction and was severe enough that an analyst warned it could delay Anthropic's IPO, which had been expected this month to raise as much as $100 billion (CBS News).