OpenAI CEO Says Company Won't Go Public in 2026, Citing AI Safety

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the company will not pursue an initial public offering in 2026, arguing that the current climate around AI safety makes a listing ill-advised for now.

In an interview with Fortune editor in chief Alyson Shontell, Altman said OpenAI is "not rushing into an IPO." He added: "Given everything happening with safety, right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public." Asked whether that means the IPO will not happen this year, Altman replied: "I would say not 2026, yeah. We've got a lot of stuff to do."

OpenAI has filed confidentially for an IPO. The New York Times reported in June that the company had hired bankers and lawyers with the goal of going public in the third or fourth quarter of 2026, but was leaning toward 2027 due to tech stock volatility and its own financial challenges. The interview came amid fallout from the OpenAI-Hugging Face hack and broader industry discussions about AI safety.