OpenAI reportedly cut its annualized revenue forecast by $20 billion

According to the Financial Times, OpenAI has told its investors that its annualized revenue is around $50 billion, a figure markedly lower than the $70 billion reported just over a week ago. That roughly $20 billion gap calls into question a comparison that had gained currency among investors: the one placing OpenAI at a revenue level similar to Anthropic's.

The $70 billion figure did not come from an official company communication but from an exercise carried out by OpenAI's own investors to try to draw a direct comparison with Anthropic's annualized revenue, according to the FT. Such comparisons, however, run into an underlying methodological problem: OpenAI and Anthropic calculate their annualized revenue differently. Anthropic includes sales made through its cloud partners in its figure, while OpenAI does not, which means the two numbers are not directly comparable.

TechCrunch says it asked OpenAI for comment on the discrepancy, with no company response recorded in the article.

The question of OpenAI's real revenue is no minor detail for a company that needs to justify the volume of capital it is taking in. In the March funding round alone, the company raised $122 billion. Its 2025 accounts, leaked earlier, showed revenue of around $13 billion, with spending significantly above that figure.

The article also recalls that OpenAI's stock market listing, which had been speculated to take place this year, has been pushed back to early 2027.

Note: this is a brief TechCrunch "In Brief" item, so the available information on the matter is limited and this summary reflects only the data it contains.