OpenAI reaches $40 billion in revenue: record growth and personnel turbulence ahead of IPO
OpenAI has demonstrated impressive momentum, increasing its annualized revenue run rate to $40 billion. This figure is double the forecasts announced at the end of 2025, significantly strengthening the company's position ahead of a potential initial public offering (IPO). However, amid financial success, the company faces serious personnel instability.
What's behind the explosive growth
The main growth drivers were three key areas. First, the number of ChatGPT subscribers continues to grow steadily. Second, sales of developer software focused on code-related work are rising rapidly. Third, a relatively new but fast-growing advertising business is making a tangible contribution.
Internal data confirms: July was a record month, generating more revenue than the entire second quarter. Company President Greg Brockman told employees that revenue grew by more than 20% compared to June. Adjusted pricing policy also played a role: lowering service costs for corporate clients not only failed to reduce revenue but also attracted new customers.
AI agents provided additional momentum. Products like Codex for programmers and ChatGPT Work for office teams are actively pushing clients to upgrade to more expensive pricing plans. CFO Sarah Friar previously forecast revenue exceeding $20 billion by the end of 2025, but current growth rates have surpassed even the boldest expectations. Management now aims to generate half of its revenue from corporate clients by the end of this year.
Personnel reshuffles and IPO preparation
Despite brilliant financial results, there is a real revolving door at the top management level. In the coming weeks, Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser, who has been with OpenAI for about eight months, will leave the company. Global sales will be led by Dali Rajic, who previously served as president at cybersecurity company Wiz.
This is not the first loss in leadership recently. Earlier, Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap left the company, and a month ago Fiiji Simo departed for health reasons. The wave of resignations has also affected other key managers: the head of the ethics department, the head of the security division, and the director of strategic development.
Preparation for the stock market debut is in full swing. OpenAI has already filed for an IPO in confidential mode and bought back $7 billion worth of employee shares using its own funds. Meanwhile, competitor Anthropic plans to go public as early as October with a valuation exceeding $2 trillion. The success of OpenAI's listing will directly depend on whether impressive revenue growth can offset the alarming signals associated with instability at the highest levels of management.
My take: OpenAI's financial metrics look flawless, but investors always factor the risk of the "human element" into valuations. The departure of so many key figures ahead of an IPO is a warning sign that could indicate internal disagreements over development strategy. The market will certainly appreciate the numbers, but the company will only receive a premium to its valuation if the management team stabilizes.