OpenAI doubles revenue to $12B, reaches 700M weekly ChatGPT users
OpenAI is aggressively pursuing billion-dollar transactions in specialized enterprise AI services as its user base grows. Demand for ChatGPT and high-value AI contracts drives its expansion. The firm is currently producing approximately $1 billion each month and has around 700 million weekly active users worldwide, encompassing both individual and business clients.
OpenAI has achieved a remarkable milestone by doubling its revenue in the first seven months of 2025, now boasting an annualised run rate of $12 billion, referencing an individual familiar with the company’s financials. The increase is propelled by heightened demand for its consumer-oriented ChatGPT offerings and a vigorous push into enterprise-level artificial intelligence (AI) services.
In a bid to bolster its expansion, OpenAI has revised its anticipated cash burn for 2025 to around $8 billion, an increase from the earlier estimate of $7 billion. This increase occurs in the context of heightened investment in research and development, alongside the growth of its enterprise service division. The company is advancing with the second phase of a $30 billion funding round. Current stakeholders Sequoia Capital and Tiger Global Management are said to be allocating hundreds of millions of dollars, with overall investor commitments—excluding Japan’s SoftBank—approaching $7.5 billion. SoftBank, having made its initial investment in OpenAI in late 2024, has thus far committed a total of $32 billion.
Earlier this month, reports emerged indicating that OpenAI was providing tailored AI solutions with a starting price of $10 million. These encompass customized implementations of its premier GPT-4o model for corporate and governmental clients. Initial users are said to have included the US Department of Defence & the technology platform Grab.
OpenAI is pursuing multi-year contracts that have the potential to reach hundreds of millions of dollars. There exists a prevailing sense of assurance that transactions valued in the billions could ultimately become a standard occurrence. The initiative is partially spearheaded by OpenAI researcher Aleksander Mądry, who concentrates on enhancing large language models (LLMs) to achieve targeted customer outcomes.
OpenAI’s growth narrative unfolds amid increasing challenges in maintaining its pool of premier AI talent. Rival Meta has reportedly recruited at least eight employees from OpenAI this year and is actively seeking talent for its own ‘Superintelligence’ lab, offering highly competitive compensation packages. OpenAI has taken measures to incentivize its current teams, asserting that the organization has maintained its “best” talent in light of external interest.
