ChatGPT creator OpenAI has cemented its position as one of the world’s most valuable companies following a fresh $6.6 billion (£5 billion) funding round.
Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), OpenAI’s largest backer, and chipmaking giant Nvidia Corp, took part, while venture capital firm Thrive Capital led the round.
OpenAI said it will use the funds to “scale the benefits of AI”. The round placed a $157 billon valuation on the company.
“The new funding will allow us to double down on our leadership in frontier AI research, increase compute capacity, and continue building tools that help people solve hard problems,” added the company.
Rumours of the jumbo funding round first emerged in August.
OpenAI, which was formed in 2015 as a non-profit, is in the process of restructuring itself into a for-profit business.
The process has proved controversial, with co-founder Elon Musk launching a legal challenge accusing co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman of breaking federal racketeering laws by manipulating Musk into co-founding a non-profit, only to shift to a for-profit model.