OpenAI generated around $4.3bn (£3.6bn) in revenue in the first six months of 2025, surpassing 16% more than its total earnings for all of last year, according to The Information, which cited financial disclosures to shareholders.

The report said the company spent heavily on research and development, burning through $2.5bn over the period. Overall R&D costs reached $6.7bn in the first half, largely driven by work on artificial intelligence and the operation of its chatbot, ChatGPT.

OpenAI, which is aiming for $13bn in revenue and $8.5bn in cash burn for the full year, ended the half with about $17.5bn in cash and securities.

Reuters has not independently verified the report, and OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In August, Reuters reported that the firm was in early discussions on a potential stock sale that would allow employees to cash out, in a deal that could value the company at about $500bn.

Last week, chipmaker Nvidia announced plans to invest up to $100bn in OpenAI and supply it with data-centre processors, underscoring the high demand for computing power in AI development.