Altman tells Fortune OpenAI will not go public in 2026

OpenAI will not go public this year, the company's chief executive, Sam Altman, said in an interview released Saturday, citing safety concerns over artificial intelligence. September 13, 2026 Altman tells Fortune OpenAI will not go public in 2026 edited by Andrew Zinin Andrew Zinin Chief Editor Meet our editorial team Behind our editorial process Editors' notes This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: fact-checked reputable news agency proofread The GIST Add as preferred source "Given everything happening with safety, right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public, and we don't feel pressure on that," Altman told Fortune magazine Friday.

"I would say not 2026, yeah. We got a lot of stuff to do," he said when asked if an initial public offering (IPO) was off the table for 2026. The company has not announced an official date for its IPO.

OpenAI and its rival Anthropic have been racing to become public companies. Both companies have filed confidential IPO documents with U.S. Regulators and are targeting public listings at valuations approaching $1 trillion.

Key concepts AI governance OpenAI corporate governance Who's behind this story? Andrew Zinin Master's in physics with research experience. Long-time science news enthusiast.

While OpenAI has filed confidentially for an IPO, the company will not be going public this year, according to CEO Sam Altman. Altman was interviewed recently by Fortune editor in chief Alyson Shontell; amidst the fallout from the OpenAI-HuggingFace hack, as well as broader discussions about AI safety, Shontell asked whether OpenAI still feels pressure to “move really fast” due to its IPO plans.

“We’re not rushing into an IPO,” Altman said. “I actually think that given everything happening with safety, right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public.” Instead, he insisted that OpenAI will go public “when we’re ready, which is when the business is ready, when we feel ready from what the moment is like in society with this technology.” When pressed on whether that means the IPO isn’t happening in 2026, Altman replied, “I would say not 2026, yeah.

We’ve got a lot of stuff to do.” The New York Times reported in June that although OpenAI had hired bankers and lawyers with the goal of going public in the third or fourth quarter of 2026, the company was leaning toward 2027 due to the volatility of tech stocks and its own financial challenges. Topics AI, Fundraising, OpenAI, sam altman October 13 – 15 San Francisco Last day to book an exhibit table is September 18.

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