OpenAI may delay IPO until 2027 as $1 trillion valuation faces market reality

OpenAI was preparing to go public as early as this fall. Bankers had been hired. Lawyers were in place. CEO Sam Altman was pushing advisers to find a path to a $1 trillion valuation, up from the company’s last private valuation of $730 billion.

Now those plans appear to be shifting.

According to a report from The New York Times, OpenAI is considering delaying its IPO until 2027 rather than accepting a lower valuation, a sign that weakening sentiment around blockbuster tech listings and growing investor caution around AI are reshaping the company’s path to the public markets.

OpenAI is leaning toward holding off its initial public offering until next year, three people involved in the company’s deliberations said, a turnabout that punctuates the uncertain future for fast-rising artificial intelligence giants.

“The maker of ChatGPT hired bankers and lawyers with an eye toward a public offering as soon as the third or fourth quarter of this year, the people said. Sam Altman, the company’s chief executive, pushed those advisers to find a way for the start-up to be valued at $1 trillion, up from the company’s last private valuation of $730 billion,” The New York Times reported, citing the people involved, who did not want to be named because they were not permitted to speak publicly about internal deliberations.

SpaceX’s Post-IPO Slump and Wall Street’s Cooling Appetite for Mega IPOs Cast a Shadow Over OpenAI’s Plans

According to the report, weakness in SpaceX’s newly traded shares and a broad selloff in chip stocks have raised concerns about investor appetite for one of the biggest public offerings in history.

Earlier this month, OpenAI confidentially filed for an IPO and targeted a valuation of up to $1 trillion. The news outlet said Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar had told some associates that the company was aiming for a 2027 listing.

The New York Times said OpenAI’s advisers presented executives with two paths. One option would keep the company on track for a faster public debut by accepting a lower valuation. The other would postpone the IPO until 2027 to achieve the full $1 trillion target.

According to the report, Altman rejected the idea of lowering the company’s valuation, making clear that a reduction was a non-starter.

The reported delay comes at a time when OpenAI is dealing with another high-profile issue involving its next flagship AI model.

Reuters also reported that President Donald Trump’s administration has asked OpenAI to stagger the release of GPT-5.6 over national security concerns. The request adds an unusual layer of government oversight to one of the year’s most anticipated AI launches.

The Information reported that Altman told employees the company would first release GPT-5.6 as a limited preview for a select group of partners, with the government “approving access customer by customer during this preview period.”

According to The Information, the phased rollout was requested by the Office of the National Cyber Director and the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Taken together, the reports show OpenAI balancing two of its biggest priorities. One is preserving the valuation it believes reflects its long-term position in artificial intelligence. The other is navigating heightened government scrutiny as its next generation of AI models nears public release.