SoftBank’s tender offer permits OpenAI workers to cash out up to $1.5 billion worth of shares as it buys a more significant stake in the company.
OpenAI, the artificial intelligence startup behind ChatGPT, has acquired a $1.5 billion investment from SoftBank Group through a tender offer allowing the purchase of shares from current and former OpenAI employees.
The offer will enable OpenAI workers to cash out restricted stock units at $210 per share. This will allow employees and stakeholders to get liquidity during limited initial public offering (IPO) prospects in tech.
The deal was reportedly driven by SoftBank’s billionaire founder and CEO, Masayoshi Son, who has expressed repeated interest in purchasing a more significant investment in the AI startup, a person familiar with the situation told CNBC.
The fundraising improves OpenAI’s financial capabilities to advance its AI development while delivering liquidity to its stakeholders amid restricted IPO options.
SoftBank boosts AI-focused investments.
The investment is part of SoftBank’s broader strategy to increase its artificial intelligence portfolio. In October, it participated in a $6.6 billion funding round for OpenAI.
The tender offer coincides with the Japanese conglomerate’s aim of investing in and supporting startups that offer forward-thinking solutions.
In July, SoftBank invested in another AI business to retrofit diverse machines and robotics devices with “general-purpose” brains.
OpenAI Sora text-to-video tool leak
OpenAI’s unreleased Sora text-to-video technology was recently leaked by beta testers and artists who made charges of exploitation throughout its developmental phase.
The group provided access to the unreleased tool online, accusing OpenAI of underpaid labor and a lack of acknowledgment for their contributions.
While OpenAI has already shut down access to the disclosed tool, the episode has fuelled ongoing discussions about ethical norms in AI research and development.
Copyright lawsuit dismissal
A copyright lawsuit against OpenAI, brought by news organizations for allegedly misusing articles to train the company’s well-known ChatGPT tool, was dismissed by a US federal judge on November 7.
The plaintiff’s attorneys said they intend to refile the case with more documentation that they said was “certain” to address the court’s concerns, even though OpenAI was cleared for lack of proof of harm.
