OpenAI's Annualized Revenue Nears $50B, Below the Reported $70B; Nasdaq Falls 1.25%

What Happened

Citing financial documents shared with investors, the FT reported that OpenAI told investors its annualized revenue was "approaching $50 billion" at the end of September — versus the $70 billion reported by media outlets including Reuters late last month, a $20 billion gap. OpenAI did not respond to Reuters' request for comment; Reuters said it could not independently verify the report. After the FT report landed at midday ET, the selloff accelerated: the Nasdaq closed down 1.25%, its worst day since mid-August, and the S&P 500 fell 0.5%. Selling spread across the AI buildout chain — Nvidia (NVDA) -2.9%, Intel (INTC) -5.3%, Oracle (ORCL) -5.5%.

The FT also reported where the $20 billion gap came from: the $70 billion was not OpenAI's number — it was computed by OpenAI's own investors trying to produce "a direct comparison with Anthropic's annualized revenue." The two companies measure it differently: Anthropic counts revenue from sales made through cloud partners like AWS and Google Cloud; OpenAI counts only net revenue. TechCrunch added: OpenAI raised $122 billion in a March funding round; leaked 2025 financials earlier this year showed about $13 billion in revenue against far larger spending; and the IPO has been pushed from this year to early 2027.

Key Facts

1. The $20B gap came from investors' own calculation: Per the FT, citing a person with knowledge of the matter: the $70B did not come from OpenAI; investors calculated it to benchmark against Anthropic. Anthropic's figure includes cloud-partner resales (gross); OpenAI counts only net revenue. What OpenAI actually told investors: "approaching $50 billion" as of end-September.
2. Market reaction: Nasdaq -1.25% (worst day since mid-August), S&P 500 -0.5%; Nvidia -2.9%, Intel -5.3%, Oracle -5.5%, with chipmakers and cloud names falling across the board. "There are going to be tremors throughout all of the related sub-industries," said Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird. In recent weeks the broader market has relied almost entirely on tech and AI gains while other sectors struggled under rising bond yields.
3. How "annualized revenue" is calculated: Both Reuters and the FT note the run-rate metric often just annualizes a single month (×12), which can be misleading. For comparison: Anthropic was reported in August at over $65B annualized revenue, with IPO chatter targeting a $2 trillion valuation as soon as this fall; OpenAI's IPO is pushed to at least next year (Altman cited AI safety concerns in September).
4. OpenAI's finances: $122B raised in March: The March $122 billion round was one of the largest private financings ever; leaked 2025 financials showed ~$13B revenue against far greater spending. The IPO has been pushed from this year to early 2027.

Context

Timeline: late September — media outlets citing investor sources put OpenAI's annualized revenue "approaching $70 billion," comparable to Anthropic's run rate; October 8 midday ET — the FT, citing investor documents, reports the figure is "approaching $50 billion," with the $20B gap traced to investors' own Anthropic-benchmark math; the Nasdaq falls 1.25% the same day. Earlier: OpenAI's $122 billion March raise (one of the largest private rounds ever); leaked 2025 financials showed ~$13B revenue against far greater spending.