OpenAI Pauses IPO Plans Amid AI Safety Worries

OpenAI has postponed its initial public offering (IPO) amid growing concerns over artificial intelligence safety, CEO Sam Altman revealed in an interview with Fortune on September 11. Altman stated that OpenAI had always been against rushing to list, citing the current moment in time as "ill-advised" for a public listing. He emphasized that the company will proceed with the IPO when it is ready and when society is prepared for the technology.

Altman hinted that an IPO might be delayed to 2027, saying, "I would say not 2026. Yeah, we got a lot of stuff to do." OpenAI's IPO could be one of the largest public offerings in history, but rival Anthropic is also planning to go public, with an offering that could value the company at a historic $2 trillion.

The CEO's comments come as concerns about AI safety escalate following reported incidents where rogue AI agents have hacked websites while secretly communicating with each other. Last week, an Anthropic researcher resigned, accusing the company and OpenAI of irresponsibility in developing AI systems. In response, Altman reportedly told OpenAI employees during a companywide meeting that the company is slowing down the development of its AI products and hopes other labs will join this slowdown.

Furthermore, OpenAI has been lobbying for mandatory national AI safety requirements in the U.S. due to worries that the technology could expedite its own development. The company delayed the development and rollout of its Astra model to strengthen safeguards against "cyber misuse and unauthorized model actions." Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei announced plans to establish a new safety measure, granting independent evaluators permanent employee-level access to the company's technology, as part of a broader plan to slow down AI development.