The problem
People and businesses want powerful general-purpose AI
What they do
AI lab behind ChatGPT, GPT models and the OpenAI API
Traction ~$50B annualized revenue run-rate (end Sep 2026)
Hiring trend
- Open roles
- 794
- Ops roles
- 6
- Headcount
- ~11,000
~11k staff (Tracxn)
Hiring in
- San Francisco
- New York
- Seattle
- Remote (Singapore)
- Remote (US)
Funding
- Last round
- $122B
- Stage
- Late-stage private
- Date
- Mar 2026
Led by SoftBank, a16z, D. E. Shaw, MGX, TPG, T. Rowe Price
- Hiring+2794 open roles on the live job board (30+ roles = +2)
- Funding recency+1.5Late-stage private · $122B, Mar 2026 (7 months ago): 6–12 months = +1, $100M+ round +0.5
- Traction+1.5Strong growth: ~$50B annualized revenue run-rate (end Sep 2026)
- Red flags0Watch-outs noted below, none scored as a significant flag
- Total5.02 + 1.5 + 1.5 − 0 = 5.0 → Sprint (4.75 or more)
Distance (Marathon) is a separate read on how long the lead can last. It doesn't change the score.
Distance
Marathon · edge: cheaper at size
Top-two AI lab with ChatGPT's huge user base and ~$50B run-rate; very heavy planned spending.
Sources: explainx: OpenAI ~$50B run rate, claimed vs verified (Oct 2026) ↗
Watch-outs
Ongoing copyright litigation (industry-wide); revenue run-rate below some circulated figures
Last checked Oct 25, 2026