In this article
OpenAI is the company that made generative AI a household idea. When it released ChatGPT in November 2022, a research lab became a consumer brand almost overnight. It is now one of the most valuable private companies in the world, and one of the most unusual in how it is owned.
Who Started It
OpenAI was founded in December 2015 as a nonprofit research lab. Its founding group included Sam Altman, Elon Musk, Ilya Sutskever, Greg Brockman, Andrej Karpathy, Wojciech Zaremba and John Schulman, with Musk and Altman as co-chairs. Musk later left. Altman is chief executive.
What It Makes
| Product | What it is for |
|---|---|
| ChatGPT | The AI assistant for writing, research, analysis and everyday questions, on the web and in apps |
| GPT models and API | The models behind ChatGPT, sold to developers and businesses to build their own products |
| Codex | An AI coding agent for software development |
| GPT Image | Generates and edits images from text |
Its newest model, GPT-6 Astra, reached approved users on 3 September 2026 and became generally available the next day.
An Unusual Structure
OpenAI has had three structures. It began as a nonprofit. In 2019 it added a "capped-profit" company so it could raise outside money, with investor returns limited to 100 times their investment. On 28 October 2025 it adopted its current form: the business became OpenAI Group PBC, a public benefit corporation, and the nonprofit was renamed the OpenAI Foundation. The Foundation holds a stake in the company and appoints its entire board, so control stays with the nonprofit.
Microsoft is its largest outside backer, with more than $13 billion invested. In April 2026 the two companies reworked their partnership, and Microsoft is no longer OpenAI's only cloud provider.
Funding and Scale
In 2026 OpenAI closed a round of $122 billion in committed capital at an $852 billion valuation. It is also a partner in Stargate, a joint venture announced in January 2025 with Oracle, SoftBank and MGX to build AI data centres, with an estimated cost of $500 billion. OpenAI confirmed in June 2026 that it had filed for an IPO, and Altman said in September that the listing is delayed until 2027.
What It Means for Businesses
OpenAI's models are a common starting point for companies building with AI, partly because so many people already use ChatGPT. The real work comes after the demo: choosing the right model for each task, keeping costs predictable, and making sure the system behaves the same way with real customers as it did in testing.
Turn an AI Idea Into a Product
Naraway's tech team builds AI features on OpenAI, Anthropic or Google models, chosen for the job and tested to hold up in production.
Talk to our AI teamOpenAI turned a research lab into the most recognised name in AI. Whether its structure holds through an IPO is the next test. Planning an AI feature? Read why most integrations fail in production
In short
OpenAI is the American AI company that makes ChatGPT and the GPT family of AI models. It was founded in December 2015 as a nonprofit by a group including Sam Altman, Elon Musk, Ilya Sutskever and Greg Brockman. Since October 2025 its business has run as OpenAI Group PBC, controlled by the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation. Its latest model, GPT-6 Astra, launched in September 2026.
- Founded in December 2015 as a nonprofit; Sam Altman is chief executive.
- It makes ChatGPT, launched in November 2022, and sells its GPT models to developers through an API.
- Since October 2025 the business is OpenAI Group PBC, controlled by the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation.
- Microsoft, its largest outside backer, has invested more than $13 billion.
- OpenAI has filed for an IPO; Sam Altman said in September 2026 that the listing is delayed until 2027.
Sources
- OpenAI, Wikipedia
- OpenAI's Billion Users, US$852bn Valuation and Stargate, AI Magazine
Frequently Asked Questions
What does OpenAI do?
OpenAI builds AI models and products, most famously ChatGPT. It also sells its GPT models to developers and businesses through an API, along with tools such as Codex for software work and models for images.
Who owns OpenAI?
OpenAI's business is OpenAI Group PBC, a public benefit corporation controlled by the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation, which holds a stake in it and appoints its board. Microsoft and other investors own the rest.
Who founded OpenAI?
OpenAI was founded in December 2015 by a group that included Sam Altman, Elon Musk, Ilya Sutskever, Greg Brockman, Andrej Karpathy, Wojciech Zaremba and John Schulman. Musk later left.
Is OpenAI a public company?
Not yet. OpenAI confirmed in June 2026 that it had filed for an IPO, and Sam Altman said in September 2026 that the listing is delayed until 2027.
