OpenAI reported a 50% increase in quarterly revenue to $10 billion for the third quarter, though the company continues to face significant operating losses, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Documents viewed by the publication show that operating losses widened to $10.9 billion from $10.1 billion in the previous quarter. Despite the losses, the company's adjusted operating margin improved to -109% from -150% in the prior period.
The financial disclosure arrives as investors increase scrutiny of the economics of artificial intelligence developers. Rival Anthropic is currently preparing for an initial public offering that could value the company at approximately $1.4 trillion. The company aims to sell 825 million shares at a price between $70 and $78 each, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Seven technology companies, including Microsoft, Google, Nvidia, and AMD, have agreed to purchase $26 billion of non-voting shares at the IPO price through a separate private placement. These firms are either investors in Anthropic or major suppliers of the company's computing power. The anticipated offering could have reached $100 billion, which would have established it as the largest IPO on record.
Market analysts are monitoring these developments as indicators of the sustainability of AI spending. Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Wealth Management, told AFP that the Anthropic listing is "just another chapter" in investor concerns regarding the financing and costs of the AI buildout.
