OpenAI Shows Too Much Money Can Be a Real Thing
The record-setting $40 billion funding round is indicative of just how much cash is flooding into AI — leading startups to chase all the wrong priorities.
AI’s $300 billion man.
Photographer: Kosuke Okahara/Bloomberg
On Monday, OpenAI announced $40 billion in new financing, the largest funding round in history, and one that nearly doubled the artificial intelligence company’s valuation to $300 billion. While no other startup can match those eyewatering numbers, they probably shouldn’t be a surprise given just how much capital is flooding into the technology: AI companies raised a record $110 billion in VC funding last year.
That kind of money might seem like a boon for AI innovation. But it may actually become a burden instead. First, by depriving these companies of invaluable market signals. Second, by driving them to appeal to investors instead of customers.