ChatGPT brought OpenAI $1.6 billion in revenue

Just a few months after the launch of the paid version of ChatGPT, OpenAI achieved an annual revenue exceeding 1.6 billion dollars, which indicates the extraordinary speed of adoption of generative artificial intelligence by the general public. OpenAI optimistically hopes to close the round with a valuation of at least $100 billion.

This meteoric rise represents a remarkable turnaround for a company that lost $540 million last year on revenues of just $28 million. The demand for the UI chatbot exceeds even the company's optimistic predictions. They originally expected sales of $200 million by the end of 2023, but by August 2022, the number exceeded $1 billion.

What's driving this AI gold rush?

For such revenue, OpenAI can thank the introduction of the ChatGPT Plus service in February 2023. The paid version enabled the company to earn an immediate profit with early access and preferential treatment of ChatGPT subscribers. Regardless of the fact that the numbers we write about in the article are astronomical, analysts claim that this is only the beginning.

The management of the company OpenAI estimates that its annual recurring revenue could reach a dizzying 5 billion dollars by the end of 2024. This is almost a 400% increase in sales.

Get ready for new big stories

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently presented development plans for a more advanced GPT-5 model coming to market. Although the model's timeline and capabilities have not been discussed, you can bet that the GPT-5 will usher in the next wave of must-have artificial intelligence.

OpenAI isn't the only company working on artificial intelligence, though it may seem like it at times. Competitors such as Anthropic are rumored to be expecting similar hockey stick growth. Anthropic initially predicted sales of $500 million by the end of 2023, but now expects to reach $850 million due to its AI users.

Smart investors are betting billions that artificial intelligence will retain its power

OpenAI wants to collect more than $100 billion of fresh funds to keep up with demand, where the value exceeds $100 billion. This is a significant jump compared to the approximately 29 billion dollars estimated last April.

Going from $28 million to $1.6 billion in annual revenue to something moreč as a year it is simply stunning. As AI capabilities continue to gain traction in both businesses and consumers, I expect OpenAI and its competitors to break growth records in the near future.

Are we ready?