OpenAI completes $7B employee share buyback at $852B valuation

On August 11, OpenAI completed a roughly $7 billion secondary-market tender offer allowing current and former employees to cash out shares at an $852 billion valuation. The buyback was funded with the company's own cash rather than external investors and covered both current and former employees. The transaction values OpenAI at $852 billion, consistent with the valuation set in its March $122 billion financing round.

This is OpenAI's third large-scale employee share transaction: two prior rounds in 2024 totaling around $1.5 billion and a $6.6 billion tender in October 2024. Combined with the $7 billion deal, the three transactions exceed $15 billion in aggregate. For a private OpenAI, such transactions meet employee liquidity needs while phasing share sales ahead of an IPO.

OpenAI confidentially filed a registration statement with the SEC in June this year but has not set a specific listing timeline. With employee share sales continuing, the market reads the move as part of pre-IPO capital structure cleanup. According to The New York Times, the company is leaning toward pushing the IPO into 2027. Rival Anthropic closed a $65 billion Series H in May at a $965 billion valuation, surpassing OpenAI, and is widely expected to list before OpenAI.

On the same day, OpenAI COO Brad Lightcap announced on X that he is leaving to start a new project. Lightcap joined OpenAI in 2018, stepped down as COO in April this year to take on special projects. He built the commercial backbone of the company, leading business development and global expansion. Outside media tallies show at least 9 executives or key leaders have left OpenAI since April 2026.