OpenAI will not pursue an initial public offering in 2026 despite having filed confidentially to go public, Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman said. TechCrunch reported the comments following Altman's recent interview with Fortune editor-in-chief Alyson Shontell.
Shontell asked Altman whether OpenAI feels pressure to accelerate its timeline because of its public listing plans. The exchange occurred amid ongoing fallout from an OpenAI-HuggingFace security breach and broader public discussions surrounding artificial intelligence safety.
Altman rejected the idea of rushing into the market. “We’re not rushing into an IPO,” Altman said during the interview. “I actually think that given everything happening with safety, right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public.” He stated that OpenAI intends to list only when the business is ready and when the company feels comfortable with how society is receiving the technology. When Shontell pressed him on whether that stance rules out a 2026 debut, Altman confirmed the delay: “I would say not 2026, yeah. We’ve got a lot of stuff to do.”
Preparations for a public listing had previously pointed to an earlier target. The New York Times reported in June that OpenAI had hired bankers and lawyers with the aim of debuting in the third or fourth quarter of 2026. However, the company had already begun leaning toward 2027 amid the volatility of technology stocks and its own internal financial challenges.
