Sam Altman is 0% excited about being CEO of a public company — but “OpenAI needs lots of capital and is going to cross all of the shareholder limits”

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Recent reports indicate that OpenAI is negotiating with investors to secure $100 billion, which would value the company at $750 billion. Currently, OpenAI is valued at $500 billion, following a share sale to employees and former staff last October that totaled $6.6 billion.

If OpenAI secures $100 billion in its next round of funding, its share of the market is predicted to increase by 50%.

I’ve been watching this company closely, and it looks like they’re preparing for a public offering. They might actually file the necessary paperwork as soon as the latter half of 2026. From what experts are saying, this could be a really massive IPO – potentially one of the biggest ever – with some estimates putting their value around a trillion dollars.

I was listening to the Big Technology Podcast recently, and OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, discussed the possibility of the company going public. He admitted he doesn’t particularly want to be at the helm of a publicly traded company, which was a pretty candid admission.

As an analyst, I’ve been considering the implications of OpenAI going public, and my feelings are mixed. While there are potential benefits, I also foresee some real challenges. Honestly, the prospect of leading OpenAI as a public company CEO? It doesn’t appeal to me at all – zero percent excited.

OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman

Although Sam Altman expressed satisfaction with OpenAI remaining a private company, he acknowledged the need for significant funding. He explained that securing this funding would likely require exceeding current shareholder limits.

“I do think it’s cool that public markets get to participate in value creation,” Altman added.

This news arrives as competition heats up, particularly from Google, which recently released Gemini 3 – a powerful new model excelling in areas like coding, video, and image generation. This increased competition reportedly caused OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to declare a company-wide emergency.

As a researcher following OpenAI, I’ve recently discovered they actually declare internal ‘code reds’ several times a year. These aren’t responses to technical issues, but rather to perceived competitive threats. Sam Altman summed it up nicely, saying they believe in being proactive and responding quickly whenever a competitor appears on the horizon.

I’ve been watching Sam Altman’s work at OpenAI, and I’m curious to hear others’ opinions on his leadership. I also wonder if the company will be able to hold onto its values once it goes public. What are your thoughts on all of this?

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2025-12-22 18:09