- OpenAI bought roughly $7 billion of employee shares at an implied $852 billion valuation, according to CNBC. [1] - The tender was reportedly completed by the company rather than by outside investors; funding details were not disclosed. [1] - OpenAI confidentially filed an IPO prospectus on June 8, 2026, but said it had not decided when to go public.
[4] OpenAI has completed a roughly $7 billion tender offer for shares held by current and former employees, valuing the company at $852 billion, CNBC reported Monday. The company itself bought the shares instead of tapping an outside investor group, according to people familiar with the transaction. [1]
The deal uses the same valuation OpenAI announced when it closed a record $122 billion funding round on March 31. OpenAI has not publicly disclosed how it funded the tender, how many shares changed hands or whether employees were offered a discount or premium to the March price. [1][2]
The March financing remains the reference price #
The March round was anchored by Amazon, Nvidia and SoftBank, with continued participation from Microsoft. OpenAI said SoftBank co-led the financing with Andreessen Horowitz, D. E. Shaw Ventures, MGX, TPG and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price. Other participants included BlackRock, Blackstone, Coatue, Fidelity, Sequoia Capital, Temasek and Thrive Capital. [2]
The $852 billion figure is a post-money valuation, meaning it included the capital committed in that financing. OpenAI’s stated corporate structure remains a public-benefit corporation controlled by the OpenAI Foundation. Microsoft holds roughly 27% of OpenAI Group, while current and former employees and other investors hold the remaining 47%, according to OpenAI. [3]
IPO option remains open #
OpenAI confirmed on June 8 that it had confidentially submitted a draft S-1 registration statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company said the filing did not establish an offering date and that remaining private could be preferable for some business priorities. [4]
The employee tender gives workers liquidity without requiring a public listing, but it does not establish an IPO timetable or change OpenAI’s disclosed governance structure. No public filing has yet provided terms for a potential offering. [1][4]
Companies mentioned #
Further sources #
[[1] CNBC reported that OpenAI completed a roughly $7 billion employee tender offer … ↗](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/10/openai-wraps-7-billion-share-sale-ahead-of-potential-ipo-.html)
[[2] OpenAI’s March 31 announcement said it closed $122 billion in committed funding… ↗](https://openai.com/index/accelerating-the-next-phase-ai/)
[[3] OpenAI’s structure page says the OpenAI Foundation controls OpenAI Group, Micro… ↗](https://openai.com/our-structure/)
[[4] OpenAI confirmed its confidential IPO filing on June 8, 2026, while saying that… ↗](https://decrypt.co/370468/openai-confidential-ipo-filing-keeps-timing-open-2)
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