More than 600 current and former OpenAI employees collectively sold $6.6 billion worth of shares in a secondary transaction conducted in October 2025, valuing the artificial intelligence company at approximately $400 billion, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
The transaction allowed eligible employees to liquidate portions of their equity holdings, with each participant permitted to sell up to $30 million in shares. Approximately 75 participants sold the maximum permitted amount.
The share sale positioned hundreds of current and former OpenAI staff among the earliest financial beneficiaries of the artificial intelligence boom, the report noted.
The deal was structured as a secondary transaction, meaning shares were sold between investors rather than through a public offering, allowing employees to convert equity into cash without the company going public.
Source: Tech-Economic Times