OpenAI, Artificial Intelligence company and maker of popular chatbot ChatGPT, has officially announced its reasons for transitioning into a for-profit organization, lays out plans.
The company via a post on its website noted that the significant shift in its corporate structure was necessitated to ensure the long-term success of its mission, which is to ensure that Artificial Intelligence (AI) benefits all of humanity.
This transition involves restructuring OpenAl’s existing for-profit arm into a Delaware Public Benefit Corporation (PBC), designed to balance the interests of shareholders, stakeholders, and the broader public. The move reflects the organization’s evolving priorities, focusing on sustainable operations, robust fundraising capabilities, and a renewed commitment to its mission.
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OpenAl was founded in 2015 as a non-profit research lab with the ambitious goal of advancing Artificial intelligence in ways most likely to benefit humanity. In its early years, the AI startup operated without commercial revenue, relying on donations and grants to support its work. However, as it became clear that building AGI required massive computational resources and capital, the organization recognized the need for a new approach.
“Our stated goal was advancing digital intelligence in the way most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return.” A non-profit structure seemed fitting, and we raised donations in various forms including cash ($137M, less than a third of which was from Elon) and compute credits and discounts ($1.8M from Amazon and $50M or more from each of Azure and Google Cloud)”, the company wrote.
In 2019, OpenAl introduced a unique hybrid structure: a for-profit entity controlled by the non-profit, designed to raise the substantial capital necessary to pursue AGI research while ensuring that profits would flow back to support the non-profit’s mission. This structure facilitated significant investments, including an initial round of over $100 million and a $1 billion partnership with Microsoft.
Over the past decade, OpenAl has transformed from a research lab to a pioneering technology company. The launch of ChatGPT in 2022 brought Al into the hands of millions, showcasing the potential of large language models in everyday life. Today, over 300 million people use OpenAl’s products weekly for learning, productivity, and more.
Recent advancements, including the o-series models introduced in 2024, have demonstrated new reasoning capabilities that further the path toward AGI. Meanwhile, OpenAl’s influence has extended beyond its products, driving innovation across the Al ecosystem and inspiring other organizations to advance Al safety and accessibility.
As OpenAl moves into 2025, the need for significant additional capital has become clear. The Board estimates that hundreds of billions of dollars will be required to develop the infrastructure, compute, and talent necessary for the AGI economy. To attract this level of investment, the organization needs to simplify its structure, making it more appealing to conventional investors. The new plan involves converting OpenAl’s for-profit arm into a Delaware Public Benefit Corporation.
This structure, already adopted by many mission-driven organizations, ensures that OpenAl’s decisions will balance profit motives with its commitment to benefiting humanity. Under the proposed structure, the non-profit arm will remain a cornerstone of OpenAl’s mission. The non-profit will retain significant shares in the newly formed PBC, valued by independent financial advisors, providing it with unprecedented resources to pursue charitable initiatives.
These initiatives will focus on areas such as healthcare, education, and science, furthering the goal of ensuring Al benefits everyone. OpenAl’s mission is no longer confined to building a single AGI system, Instead, it envisions a continuous journey of contributing to the development of a new Al-powered economy. By evolving its structure, OpenAl aims to lead this transformation while ensuring that the benefits of Artificial Intelligence are widely shared.
With this transition, OpenAl is poised to become more than a lab or startup, it is set to emerge as a sustainable, enduring organization committed to advancing Al’s capability, safety, and positive impact on the world.