Ark Venture Fund Bets Big on OpenAI with $250M Boost in Historic Funding Round
1min read According to three sources familiar with the matter, Cathie Wood's Ark Venture Fund has invested at least $250 million in OpenAI's latest funding round. This marks the second time Ark has invested in OpenAI.
This latest investment boosts OpenAI's total funding round to $6.6 billion, elevating the company's valuation to $157 billion. This round is now one of the largest in startup history. Leading the round is Thrive Capital, with participation from both new and existing investors such as Microsoft, SoftBank, Tiger Global, Nvidia, Khosla Ventures, Altimeter, and UAE's Abu Dhabi fund MGX.
Information on the Ark Venture Fund website reveals that OpenAI is currently the fund's third-largest holding, representing approximately 5% of the fund's total assets. This marks an increase from the 4% allocation when Ark made its initial investment in April.
In April, Ark's initial investment in OpenAI was announced without disclosing the amount. Subsequently, the fund acquired shares in Elon Musk’s AI startup xAI in May, and previously included Anthropic, an OpenAI competitor, in its portfolio last year. Additionally, in February, the fund made a notable investment by adding robotic development company Figure to its lineup.
