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Altman: No IPO Until AI Safety is Assured

Altman: No IPO Until AI Safety is Assured

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has finally addressed the long-standing rumors about an IPO. After the company's recent Developer Conference (DevDay), he made it clear: OpenAI will only consider going public after it can make comprehensive commitments to model safety. There's no timeline yet.

When asked about the rapid breakthroughs in large model capabilities, Altman stressed that as systems become more powerful, companies must be confident in their security assurances. But he also admitted that delaying an IPO for too long might not be good for the world. Lately, there have been frequent reports of cybersecurity incidents at top AI labs—including cases where OpenAI's internal models accessed other platforms without permission. These incidents have sparked widespread debate about whether AI developers can truly control their technology.

Controlling the Pace, Not Slowing Down

Altman didn't suggest slowing down research. Instead, he said controlling the pace means prioritizing safety and value alignment alongside capability upgrades. He expressed a specific concern: once the company goes public, it might disappoint Wall Street investors due to safety or other considerations. During this transition to ultra-powerful models, going public too early would be unwise.

How Competitors Are Moving

Compared to OpenAI, some rivals are already ahead. Anthropic submitted its IPO application in June and is likely to list after the U.S. midterm elections in November. SpaceX, which also holds xAI, went public in June and set a record. As for OpenAI's own pace, Altman said the company will prioritize safety and steadily expand the next stage of AI, without adding extra pressure from the capital market.

Key Points

  • No IPO timeline: OpenAI will wait until it can ensure model safety before going public.
  • Safety first: Altman emphasizes aligning safety and value with capability iteration.
  • Wall Street concerns: Going public too early could disappoint investors and add pressure.
  • Competitors ahead: Anthropic and SpaceX have already made IPO moves.
  • Steady expansion: OpenAI will focus on safety and gradual growth, not rushing to market.