OpenAI Confidentially Files for Initial Public Offering (IPO) OpenAI has taken its first formal step toward a historic stock market debut, but the company is signaling it is in no rush to actually list its shares.

On June 8, OpenAI disclosed that it had confidentially submitted a draft S-1 registration statement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, a move that “gives us the option to go public sooner if that ends up being best.” The company said it expected the filing to leak and therefore opted to announce it itself, while stressing that “it may be a while” before an IPO because some goals are “likely easier as a private company.”

The filing came just over a week after main rival Anthropic submitted its own confidential S-1, escalating what one outlet described as a race “between Anthropic and OpenAI to go public and tap investors for tens of billions of dollars.” OpenAI’s move was widely characterized as one of the most closely watched offerings in years: the ChatGPT maker has been valued at around $852 billion and is expected to seek a valuation north of $1 trillion, in what the Financial Times called a “blockbuster Wall Street listing.”

Human analysts quickly framed the step as both strategic and fraught. Business Insider noted that while OpenAI has filed its confidential S-1, it “may be a while before it goes public,” highlighting internal debates over timing and the trade-offs of remaining private versus going to market. Reports in Axios and TechCrunch pointed to missed revenue targets, massive compute commitments and reported tension between CEO Sam Altman and CFO Sarah Friar over how fast to pursue an IPO.

From the company’s own perspective, articulated in its brief Rule 135 notice, the confidential submission is primarily about flexibility rather than an imminent listing. OpenAI emphasized that any eventual securities offering would follow full registration requirements and that no sale is being solicited yet, underscoring that Wall Street’s most anticipated AI IPO is still in its early stages.

1. OpenAI – “Confidential submission of draft S-1 to the SEC” – “We recently submitted a confidential S-1. We expect it to leak so we’re just announcing it. … this gives us the option to go public sooner if that ends up being best.”

2. OpenAI – “Confidential submission of draft S-1 to the SEC” – “We have not decided on timing yet; it may be a while because there are things we want to do that are likely easier as a private company.”

3. Axios – “OpenAI Files IPO Paperwork” – “The race is on between Anthropic and OpenAI to go public and tap investors for tens of billions of dollars.”

4. Financial Times – “OpenAI files to go public in blockbuster Wall Street listing” – “ChatGPT creator has submitted paperwork for IPO expected to value company at more than $1tn.”

5. Business Insider – “OpenAI confidentially files for IPO, but says it ‘may be a while’ before it goes public” – “OpenAI has filed its confidential S-1, the first official step toward a blockbuster IPO.”

6. TechCrunch – “OpenAI files confidentially for IPO, following Anthropic” – OpenAI’s CFO has “raised concerns that OpenAI may not be able to support its massive data compute spending commitments.”

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