Shares of Nvidia, Oracle, CoreWeave and other artificial intelligence companies fell sharply on Thursday after OpenAI disclosed that its annualized revenue reached roughly $50 billion at the end of September, below the $68 billion figure reported widely last month.
A person familiar with the matter told CNBC that the higher $68 billion included gross revenue from OpenAI's partners, providing a more direct comparison with rival Anthropic. OpenAI shared the corrected $50 billion figure in an investor presentation, the person said.
OpenAI reported 77% total run rate growth during its third quarter and 107% run rate growth for its enterprise business in the same period, according to the person, who requested anonymity to discuss the numbers.
The stock market reacted sharply to the revenue downgrade. Nvidia shares fell 3%, Oracle dropped nearly 6%, and CoreWeave slipped nearly 8%. Semiconductor and infrastructure stocks broadly declined, with Advanced Micro Devices falling 4%, Broadcom dropping 4%, Intel declining 5%, and Super Micro Computer slipping nearly 5%.
OpenAI faces pressure to justify its $852 billion valuation as it prepares for an expected public offering. The company confidentially filed its prospectus with regulators in June and executives signaled the company is targeting a 2027 IPO debut. CEO Sam Altman said in September that "right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public," citing ongoing concerns about safety.
OpenAI is in early-stage discussions with investors about a potential new funding round that could raise around $30 billion, though CNBC reported that figure could change and no term sheet has been finalized. The company closed a $122 billion funding round in March, and CFO Sarah Friar told CNBC last week that it remains "very well capitalized."
Rival Anthropic is also preparing for a major IPO, reportedly seeking a $2 trillion valuation. Anthropic told investors its annualized revenue run rate hit $65 billion at the end of July. Independent research provider New Constructs valued Anthropic at $150 billion in an August report, calling its upcoming offering "the most ridiculous IPO of 2026." According to a Reuters report citing a leaked prospectus, Anthropic's 2025 revenue was $4.6 billion with a net loss of $42 billion.
OpenAI recently pulled plans to launch its GPT-6.1 Astra model, saying it did not meet safety standards, amid broader debate over AI safety risks.