On a stage in early November 2025, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella shared a rare, unscripted moment of celebration. Their beaming faces weren’t just for the cameras—they marked the formalization of a sweeping new partnership and a corporate overhaul that could reshape the future of artificial intelligence. The occasion? OpenAI’s transformation into a public benefit corporation (PBC) and the deepening of its alliance with Microsoft, a move that’s already sending ripples across the tech industry and beyond.
OpenAI’s restructuring, finalized in late October, is more than a legal maneuver. The company, once a nonprofit research lab, now operates as OpenAI Group PBC, a for-profit entity controlled by the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation. This dual structure is designed to solve one of AI’s biggest dilemmas: how to secure the massive capital needed for cutting-edge research while ensuring that the benefits of artificial general intelligence (AGI) flow to all of humanity, not just a select few investors.
According to Smart Money, Microsoft’s cumulative investment in OpenAI has soared to $135 billion, culminating in the tech giant acquiring a 27% equity stake—now worth about $135 billion. Some sources, such as 36Kr, even place Microsoft’s share at 32.5%. Either way, the numbers are staggering, and the partnership now binds the fates of the two firms more tightly than ever. Nadella, reflecting on the journey that began with a $1 billion bet in 2019, said, “Since 2019, we have shared a vision with OpenAI—to develop AI in a responsible manner and make it benefit the public. This relationship, which started with research investment, has now grown into one of the most successful partnerships in the industry.”
For Altman, the enthusiasm is palpable. As he joked onstage, “I really hope Satya can earn a trillion dollars from this investment!” The half-serious quip isn’t just gratitude for Microsoft’s early support—it’s a reflection of OpenAI’s ambitions. The company is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO) that could value it at up to $1 trillion, potentially the largest in history. Reports from Reuters and Cointribune confirm that OpenAI’s market debut could instantly place it among the world’s most valuable public companies.
OpenAI’s growth has been nothing short of meteoric. Since ChatGPT’s launch in November 2022, the app has shattered records, reaching 100 million users in just two months and, by early 2025, nearly 800 million weekly users. That’s a user base that dwarfs the early growth of platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Revenue projections are equally eye-popping: from under $1 billion in 2022 to an expected $12 billion in 2025. Yet, the journey has been costly—OpenAI posted a $5 billion loss on $3.7 billion in revenue in 2024, and Microsoft absorbed $3.1 billion of OpenAI’s recent $11.5 billion quarterly loss. Altman insists these losses are necessary investments for long-term growth and mission fulfillment.
The new agreement between the two companies isn’t just about money. It cements Microsoft’s exclusive rights to OpenAI’s most advanced AGI models and Azure API access until 2032, or even beyond if safety standards are met. That means if Google or Amazon want to deploy OpenAI’s top-tier models, they must do so through Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform. As Nadella put it, Azure has become the new “holy land” for AI developers, and the numbers back him up: Microsoft’s Intelligent Cloud division saw a 27% year-on-year revenue jump in the first quarter of fiscal 2025, and the company’s commercial cloud business now boasts $392 billion in unfilled orders, up 51% from the previous year.
Central to this deal is a mind-boggling $250 billion Azure pre-purchase contract. OpenAI has committed to buying this massive amount of cloud resources over the next several years, ensuring it has the computing power needed for AI model training and deployment. Microsoft CFO Amy Hood explained that these orders are delivered in stages, with hardware deployed as contracts are initiated. “Hardware such as GPUs and CPUs will only be deployed when the contract is actually initiated and delivered,” she said, expressing confidence in Microsoft’s risk management.
But the rush for computing power is so intense that even these resources aren’t enough. Both Altman and Nadella have spoken candidly about the chronic shortage of high-end chips and data center capacity. Altman confessed, “The extent to which we are held back by the lack of computing power is beyond the imagination of the outside world.” The situation has forced OpenAI to limit new user access and reduce model capabilities at times, simply because the infrastructure hasn’t kept up with demand. Microsoft, for its part, has spent nearly $35 billion in a single quarter building new data centers and buying AI chips, yet Hood admitted, “We’ve been in short supply for several consecutive quarters. We thought we could catch up, but we didn’t—the demand is still rising.”
To address this, OpenAI and Oracle announced the Stargate Project on November 2, 2025—a 1GW data center campus in Saline Township, Michigan, set to break ground in early 2026. The project will create over 2,500 construction jobs and dramatically expand the computing power available for next-generation AI research. This investment highlights just how critical physical infrastructure is for the AI revolution.
On the governance side, the OpenAI Foundation now holds shares worth up to $130 billion, making it one of the world’s largest charitable funds. The Foundation has pledged an initial $25 billion to healthcare and AI security and resilience, aiming to tackle diseases, improve diagnostics, and address the societal challenges posed by advanced AI—such as cybersecurity and misuse prevention. Altman is particularly passionate about this mission, stating, “If we can use AI to discover new drugs, cure diseases, and make these discoveries available to all of humanity, it will be a remarkable thing.”
To safeguard the public interest as AI approaches the AGI threshold, OpenAI’s new partnership terms require that any declaration of AGI be verified by an independent panel of experts. This extra layer of accountability is meant to build public trust and reassure policymakers as AI’s capabilities—and risks—grow.
Technological change isn’t limited to hardware and corporate structures. Nadella and Altman both see a new paradigm emerging in software: the shift from traditional apps to AI “agents” capable of carrying out complex tasks through natural language. Nadella described this as the “magic moment” when user interfaces merge with AI, allowing users to skip cumbersome app navigation and simply ask for what they need. Microsoft has already injected AI into Office products with Microsoft 365 Copilot, and GitHub Copilot is transforming software development, accelerating productivity for programmers worldwide.
As OpenAI prepares for its historic IPO and Microsoft rides a 21% stock surge over the past six months, both companies are betting big on a future where AI is as ubiquitous—and as transformative—as electricity or the internet. The path forward is fraught with uncertainty, but with record-breaking investments, a pioneering corporate structure, and a commitment to public good, OpenAI and Microsoft are determined to lead the way.
The coming years will reveal whether this alliance can truly deliver on its promise: to harness the power of artificial intelligence not just for profit, but for the benefit of all.
