To The Moon

On March 31 local time in the United States, OpenAI officially announced the completion of the largest private financing round in Silicon Valley history, raising a total of $122 billion. The post-financing valuation surged to $852 billion, laying a solid foundation for its upcoming IPO. The transaction is expected to push its IPO valuation to $1 trillion. The round was led by three strategic partners—Amazon, Nvidia, and SoftBank—which collectively committed $110 billion, dominating the funding. Amazon pledged $50 billion under a phased payment structure: $15 billion was disbursed immediately, while the remaining $35 billion is contingent on OpenAI completing its IPO or achieving its defined "Artificial General Intelligence" (AGI). In addition to the lead investors, SoftBank collaborated with Andreessen Horowitz, D.E. Shaw, and other institutions to co-lead the round. Global top-tier investment firms such as Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, BlackRock, and Blackstone also participated. Notably, Microsoft, a long-term partner of OpenAI, joined the financing but did not disclose its contribution amount. Concurrently, OpenAI expanded its existing revolving credit facility to approximately $4.7 billion. This facility, supported by a syndicate of over ten global banks including JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley, remains undrawn, providing ample liquidity for future operations and R&D. A groundbreaking aspect of this round was OpenAI's first-time allowance of individual investor participation, raising over $3 billion through three designated banking channels, breaking from its previous institutional-only model. Furthermore, OpenAI announced it will be included in several ETFs managed by ARK Invest, led by Cathie Wood. The ARK Innovation ETF will allocate about 3% of its portfolio to OpenAI, marking the flagship fund's first investment in a private company and boosting market attention and public engagement. Market expectations suggest OpenAI's earliest IPO window could open in the fourth quarter of 2026, likely on the Nasdaq, though the exact timing remains subject to multiple variables. Before listing, OpenAI must complete key preparations, including a legal transition from a nonprofit to a for-profit structure and the first public disclosure of audited financial data, which will be crucial for IPO review and valuation. In a parallel development, SpaceX, another tech giant, is accelerating its own IPO plans. According to The Information, SpaceX aims to go public by June of this year, targeting a fundraising amount that could exceed $75 billion. This figure would far surpass the previous record of $29.4 billion set by Saudi Aramco, potentially claiming the title of "largest IPO in history." As of March 2026, SpaceX's valuation, following its merger with xAI, has reached $1.25 trillion. To ensure a smooth stock sale, SpaceX has assembled a super underwriting team, with global top investment banks including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Citigroup reportedly participating in its IPO. The concentrated IPO launches of behemoths like OpenAI and SpaceX represent the most intense liquidity test for tech stocks in decades. These giants are poised to reshape global tech valuations and create a powerful capital siphon effect, profoundly altering fund flows in capital markets.