OpenAI may need billions of dollars to continue operating

(MENAFN) According to recent financial assessments referenced in multiple reports, OpenAI — the company behind ChatGPT — may be required to secure more than $200 billion in additional capital by the end of this decade just to sustain its current trajectory. Analysts say the massive sum reflects skyrocketing computing demands as global competition in artificial intelligence becomes increasingly intense.

Insights from HSBC, shared with clients this week, outline a revised projection model built around OpenAI’s long-term cloud and infrastructure arrangements with major tech providers. Even when applying optimistic growth expectations, the analysis still indicates a shortfall of roughly $207 billion by 2030, despite anticipated revenues of approximately $129 billion.

Reports suggest HSBC expects OpenAI’s cloud-service expenses alone to accumulate to nearly $800 billion by the end of the decade. The bank also predicts that ChatGPT’s user base could surge to 3 billion active users by 2030, up from about 800 million last month — a figure representing nearly half of all adults globally outside China.

Since ChatGPT’s release three years ago, OpenAI has been a focal point of the AI boom, drawing massive investment as major technology companies invest unprecedented amounts into computing infrastructure and advanced semiconductors. Some experts have cautioned that spending across the sector may be outpacing actual returns, potentially inflating a financial bubble that could affect both OpenAI and the large corporations supporting its growth.

Tech firms worldwide are racing to match ChatGPT-like capabilities, pushing research, hardware costs, and overall investment levels to new highs. In a notable milestone reported in October, OpenAI surpassed SpaceX to become the world’s highest-valued private enterprise following a $6.6 billion employee share sale, which placed the company’s valuation at about $500 billion.

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