OpenAI is currently engaged in discussions to secure a funding round aiming to raise approximately $40 billion, which would assess the value of the company behind ChatGPT at as much as $340 billion.

The company, supported by Microsoft, achieved a valuation of $157 billion in October when it raised $6.6 billion.

According to reports from the Wall Street Journal, the negotiations indicate that OpenAI’s valuation may nearly double. The company has not commented on these developments.

SoftBank is anticipated to spearhead this potential investment round, planning to inject between $15 billion and $25 billion into OpenAI. A portion of this investment is intended to facilitate OpenAI’s involvement in Stargate, a collaborative endeavor between OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank, aimed at mobilizing up to $500 billion to ensure the US maintains its lead over China in the global AI competition.

This new investment from SoftBank would add to the $15 billion it has already pledged to the Stargate initiative.

Founded in 2015 in San Francisco as a non-profit organization, OpenAI includes notable figures such as its CEO Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and Peter Thiel among its founders.

Elon Musk departed from OpenAI in 2018 due to potential conflicts with Tesla, where he was involved in developing AI systems for autonomous vehicles.

In 2019, OpenAI shifted its operational model to focus on generating revenue through its chatbots developed from large-language models. Under Altman’s leadership, the organization secured a substantial $10 billion investment from Microsoft, an initial collaborator. Subsequently, OpenAI’s products have been integrated into various Microsoft Office applications, rapidly making it one of the most valuable private enterprises globally.

However, the company is now facing increased competition, as Chinese AI start-up DeepSeek recently announced the launch of R1, a chatbot positioned as a direct competitor to ChatGPT, and offering it at a significantly lower price point. Altman recognized DeepSeek’s R1 as “an impressive model, particularly regarding its cost-effectiveness,” in a recent post on X.

Following this, OpenAI confirmed its inquiry into whether DeepSeek might have “inappropriately distilled our models.”

The organization emphasized its commitment to implementing proactive measures to safeguard its technology and stated that it would continue collaborating with the US government to protect the development of advanced AI models.