OpenAI is reportedly close to another mega-round of private funding instead of going straight to its IPO: up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion pre-money valuation, in a round led by Coatue and investors in the UAE, sources told CNBC, via TechCrunch's October 22 report. OpenAI told investors on Thursday that it wants signatures locked in by the end of next week, and the financing is being positioned as an 'opportunistic' bridge ahead of a public listing.

The number has already moved once. Bloomberg reported a month ago that OpenAI was working on raising $30 billion at a $1.4 trillion valuation, and both outlets note the terms are still being negotiated and could change. CNBC also reports the UAE funding could be coupled with a commercial deal securing more computing capacity for OpenAI from the UAE. OpenAI declined to comment.

For scale: OpenAI filed confidential IPO paperwork in June, its last raise in March valued it at $852 billion post-money, and CFO Sarah Friar has pointed employees to a 2027 IPO timeline. A close above $1 trillion would make OpenAI the most valuable private company on record and would raise the bar further for Anthropic's own debut — reports have Anthropic seeking a $1.5 to $2 trillion valuation, after raising $65 billion at $965 billion in May and also filing confidentially in June. An October 23 follow-up in The Decoder, citing the Financial Times, adds colour on why the target moved: demand was weaker than in previous rounds, with some backers experiencing 'indigestion' after heavy investments in earlier fundraises. UAE investors and Coatue are reported to be leading the round. Treat this as rumor-grade until the round actually closes: it rests on anonymous sources, and the valuation has already slipped $150 billion in a month of reporting.