OpenAI is in talks at a valuation above $1.2 trillion

Days after Sam Altman publicly backed slowing AI development down, investors opened talks that would value OpenAI 41 percent higher than it was in March.

The numbers

Bloomberg reported on September 15, 2026 that investors initiated discussions at a valuation above $1.2 trillion, with the Wall Street Journal carrying the same figure that day. Forbes describes it as an offer from investors to invest at that valuation. OpenAI closed its last round on March 31, 2026 with $122 billion in committed capital at a post-money valuation of $852 billion.

That makes the jump 41 percent in under six months. No round size, lead investor or closing date has been reported. Forbes reports separately that OpenAI is itself seeking a higher figure, $1.5 trillion, which is the company’s ask rather than where the talks currently stand. Forbes compares that ask to a $730 billion valuation for the last round; OpenAI’s own announcement of that round in March gives $852 billion post-money, and this article uses the company’s figure.

The timing

Dario Amodei published his essay arguing the industry must pace the frontier on Saturday, September 12. Altman and Elon Musk both endorsed it. In a Fortune interview that aired the next day, Altman said that right now was an ill-advised time to go public, pointing to what safety and alignment work currently requires.

Both positions can hold at once, which is the uncomfortable part. Investors do not underwrite a 41 percent markup for a company they expect to move more slowly, so either the slowdown is narrower in practice than it sounded, or the market has concluded it does not change the trajectory.

For developers building on these APIs the practical read is simpler. Valuations at this scale raise the pressure to monetize usage rather than lower it, whatever the safety messaging around them says.