PANews reported on April 1st that according to CNBC, OpenAI announced on Monday that it has completed a financing round of $40 billion, setting a record for the highest financing for a private tech company. After this round of financing, the company's valuation reached $300 billion (including newly injected capital). SoftBank of Japan became the lead investor with $30 billion, and existing investors including Microsoft, Coatue, Altimeter, and Thrive jointly invested $10 billion. This financing round has pushed OpenAI's valuation to the third-highest among unlisted global companies, second only to SpaceX ($35 billion) and on par with ByteDance, TikTok's parent company.

OpenAI stated in its official blog that the new funds will be used to "push the boundaries of AI research" and expand computing infrastructure. Informed sources told CNBC that approximately $18 billion will be invested in the "Stargate" project, a joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle, which was announced by former US President Trump in January 2025. The first $10 billion will be immediately available, with the remaining $30 billion expected to be injected by the end of 2025. However, the financing agreement includes a special clause: if OpenAI fails to complete its for-profit structural reorganization by December 31, 2025, the financing amount could be reduced by up to $10 billion. This clause intensifies the pressure on the company's transformation, which requires approval from Microsoft and the California Attorney General.