Who owns OpenAI? Foundation, Microsoft and other stakes
OpenAI is owned by no single person or company. Since the recapitalization announced on 28 October 2025, the for-profit business is OpenAI Group PBC, a public benefit corporation. The nonprofit OpenAI Foundation holds roughly a quarter of it and controls its board, Microsoft holds a stake of about a quarter, and employees and outside investors hold the rest. The percentages below are the official figures from that restructuring; OpenAI has not published a newer breakdown that we could confirm, so later funding rounds will have diluted every holder.
OpenAI ownership at a glance
- OpenAI Foundation (nonprofit): about 26% of OpenAI Group PBC at the October 2025 restructuring, plus a warrant for more equity if the company's value grows sharply.
- Microsoft: about 27% on an as-converted diluted basis at the same date, versus 32.5% in the for-profit before the recapitalization, a figure Microsoft gave excluding OpenAI's then-recent funding rounds.
- Employees, SoftBank and other investors: the remainder, roughly 47% at that date, split across many holders.
These percentages are a snapshot from the restructuring. OpenAI may have issued new shares since then, which would dilute every holder, and we have not found an updated cap table from the company. Treat any pie chart with a later date, including those on reference sites, as an estimate.
What changed on 28 October 2025
Until then, OpenAI was a nonprofit that controlled a capped-profit subsidiary. Investors could earn a limited multiple of what they put in, and the nonprofit board had the final word. That arrangement made raising very large sums awkward.
The recapitalization swapped it for a more conventional equity structure. The for-profit became OpenAI Group PBC, and the original nonprofit was renamed the OpenAI Foundation. The profit cap was replaced with ordinary shares. If the term is new to you, our explainer on the public benefit corporation structure used by OpenAI and Anthropic covers what the legal form requires.
Microsoft's own announcement gives the clearest primary numbers: a stake of roughly 27% on an as-converted diluted basis, valued at about $135 billion at the time, with the figure counting every owner including employees, investors and the Foundation (Microsoft, 28 October 2025).
The OpenAI Foundation: owner and controller
The Foundation is the single largest holder, with about 26% at the restructuring. OpenAI valued that stake at roughly $130 billion when it announced the deal, and it came with a warrant for additional equity if the company's value rises more than tenfold over the next 15 years.
The stake matters less than the control that comes with it. The Foundation appoints the directors of the PBC, so a minority economic holder directs the company. OpenAI also said safety and security decisions would stay under a Foundation committee. The attorneys general of Delaware and California reviewed the plan before it went ahead.
For a plain-language version: the Foundation owns a large block and picks the board, so it decides who runs things, while it does not hold a majority of the economic value.
Microsoft's stake and rights
Microsoft was OpenAI's first big backer and remains its largest corporate shareholder. Under the October 2025 agreement:
- its rights to OpenAI models and products run through 2032, including models developed after AGI, subject to safety guardrails;
- any declaration of AGI by OpenAI must be verified by an independent panel of experts;
- OpenAI committed to buy an additional $250 billion of Azure services, while Microsoft gave up its right of first refusal to be OpenAI's compute provider.
Microsoft's percentage is the figure most likely to have moved since. New share issuance dilutes it, so use the 27% only as the restructuring-date figure.
SoftBank, employees and other investors
SoftBank led the 2025 round that valued OpenAI at $300 billion and is among the largest outside financial investors. OpenAI has not published a percentage for SoftBank, and figures you see elsewhere are estimates, so check SoftBank's own filings before quoting one.
Employees hold equity through grants and have been able to sell part of it in periodic secondary sales; those sales move shares between holders without adding money to the company. Other holders include venture firms and other private investors. Their stake sizes are generally not disclosed.
Round sizes, valuations and dates are laid out in our OpenAI valuation history. For the latest headlines on financing and an eventual listing, follow our AI business coverage.
What about Sam Altman?
Altman is CEO but is not described as an owner of OpenAI in any official ownership breakdown. OpenAI has not published a stake for him, so any percentage you see attached to his name is speculation. If that changes in a regulatory filing, such as an IPO prospectus, it will be the first authoritative number. See how those filings work in our IPO terms guide.
Who owns ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is a product of OpenAI Group PBC, so its owners are the same shareholders. There is no separate ChatGPT company. Related money questions, such as how startups are funded at this scale, sit in our funding section.
Is OpenAI publicly traded?
As far as we could confirm, no. OpenAI shares do not trade on any exchange, so you cannot buy them in the open market. Check OpenAI's own announcements for any listing plans.
Frequently asked questions
Who owns OpenAI now?
OpenAI Group PBC is owned by the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation, Microsoft, employees, SoftBank and other investors. At the October 2025 restructuring the Foundation held about 26% and Microsoft about 27%.
Does Microsoft own OpenAI?
No. Microsoft is the largest corporate shareholder with a stake of roughly 27% at the restructuring, but it does not control the company. The OpenAI Foundation appoints the board.
Does Elon Musk own part of OpenAI?
Musk co-founded OpenAI and donated early funding, but he left the board in 2018 and is not listed among its owners. He has sued the company over its direction; that litigation does not change the published ownership figures above.
What is OpenAI Group PBC?
It is the for-profit arm of OpenAI, organised as a Delaware public benefit corporation. It has a legal duty to weigh its public mission alongside shareholder returns.
Can I buy OpenAI stock?
Not on a public market, because OpenAI is private. Shares are held by employees and by investors who bought in private rounds.