Bloomberg: OpenAI Says Annualized Revenue Could Reach $70 Billion by Year-End

At $50 billion as of late September

But $70 billion by year-end is within reach

"Enterprise AI growth is accelerating"

OpenAI's annualized revenue stood at about $50 billion as of the end of September, about $20 billion below market expectations, but analysis suggests it could reach $70 billion by year-end.

Bloomberg reported on October 9 that OpenAI recently told investors it expects annualized revenue to reach or exceed $70 billion by the end of this year. Annualized revenue was about $50 billion as of late September, but growth in its enterprise AI business could lift that figure by year-end.

Annualized revenue is a metric that estimates a full year's sales based on revenue generated over a specific period. The $50 billion figure for late September and the $70 billion figure for year-end are not confirmed full-year revenue totals. They are annualized figures based on revenue trends during those periods. The year-end target of $70 billion is $20 billion, or about 40%, higher than the late-September level of $50 billion.

OpenAI shared those figures with investors during ongoing fundraising talks, Bloomberg said.

The Financial Times reported on October 8 that OpenAI's annualized revenue was about $50 billion as of late September. Markets reacted to the figure as coming in $20 billion below prior expectations. The newspaper said the gap stemmed from OpenAI investors trying to calculate its annualized revenue using the same method applied to Anthropic.

The confusion around the revenue figures spilled into U.S. equities that day. The Nasdaq 100 Index fell 1.4%, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped 3.4%.

Attention is now focused on whether OpenAI can meet its year-end annualized revenue target of $70 billion by expanding its enterprise AI business.

Hwang Jung-soo, New York correspondent, Korea Economic Daily hjs@hankyung.com