Sam Altman is tired of people questioning OpenAI's business model
Altman said OpenAI’s revenue is “growing steeply” and that the company expects strong demand across its consumer and enterprise businesses
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OpenAI boss Sam Altman defended the company’s financial outlook during a recent podcast interview and dismissed concerns about how it will fund its large-scale artificial intelligence projects.
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Speaking on a podcast with Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella, Altman responded sharply when asked about reports that OpenAI generates about $13 billion in annual revenue, which is far below its $1.4 trillion in planned spending on computing infrastructure.
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“First of all, we’re doing well more revenue than that,” Altman said. “Second of all, Brad [the host], if you want to sell your shares, I’ll find you a buyer. I just… enough. I think there are a lot of people who would love to buy OpenAI shares.”
Altman’s comments come amid renewed scrutiny of OpenAI’s financial model. Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently posted on X accusing him of “stealing a nonprofit.” Altman posted a response that he had helped turn “the thing you left for dead into what should be the largest nonprofit ever.” The exchange came days after OpenAI restructured as a for-profit company.
On the podcast, Altman said OpenAI’s revenue is “growing steeply” and that the company expects strong demand across its consumer and enterprise businesses, including ChatGPT and future AI devices. Nadella added that OpenAI has “beaten every business plan” it has presented to Microsoft.
He also suggested the company’s critics should put their views to the test. “One of the rare times it’s appealing is when those people are writing these ridiculous ‘OpenAI is about to go out of business’ [posts],” he said. “I would love to tell them they could just short the stock, and I would love to see them get burned on that.”
OpenAI, valued at about $500 billion after a secondary share sale last month, is privately held. Altman said there is no decision or timetable to go public despite reports suggesting an initial public offering (IPO) could happen by 2026 or 2027.
“I’m a realist, I assume it will happen someday,” Altman said of an IPO. “We don’t have a date in mind. We don’t have a board decision to do this or anything like that.”