Apple Reportedly Exits OpenAI's Latest Funding Negotiations
The latest reports say that Apple has pulled out of OpenAI's latest round of funding talks, but other investors continue to discuss the amount of funding.
Apple has pulled out of OpenAI's latest round of funding talks, a new report says.
The news comes on the heels of news that OpenAI is in talks with a number of potential investors for a new round of funding, with plans to raise around $6.5 billion in funding that would value the company at $150 billion. Those involved in the talks are understood to include Microsoft, which has invested in OpenAI, as well as venture capital firms Thrive Capital and Khosla Ventures, and new investors such as NVIDIA and Apple.
While Apple has opted out, other investors continue to negotiate on the amount of financing. Microsoft and Thrive Capital are expected to invest about $1 billion each, according to people familiar with the matter. Investment firm Tiger Global Management and UAE state-owned MGX are also in talks to participate.
Thrive Capital, the lead investor in the round, also said it could invest another $1 billion at the same valuation next year if OpenAI meets its revenue targets next year, another source said.
OpenAI's revenue next year is expected to soar to $11.6 billion from $3.7 billion this year. However, OpenAI is still facing huge losses, which are expected to be as high as $5 billion this year.
To make up for the losses, OpenAI may increase its revenue by raising ChatGPT fees in addition to bringing in outside investors.
OpenAI plans to raise ChatGPT's subscription price for individual users from $20 per month to $22 per month by the end of this year, the sources said. And the price will continue to rise steadily over the next five years. ChatGPT Plus is expected to cost $44 per month by 2029.
However, raising the price of ChatGPT is also a risky move.
Currently ChatGPT has around 10 million paying subscribers, but according to a survey conducted in May this year, around 93% of respondents were not willing to pay more than $10 per month for generative AI.
The survey also mentioned that only 1% of respondents were willing to pay $20 per month for a ChatGPT subscription, but the lower price could help increase adoption rates several times over. This means that the number of paying subscribers could slip once OpenAI raises the cost of ChatGPT year after year.
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