OpenAI told investors its annualized revenue had reached roughly $50 billion at the end of September, below the $68 billion figure that had been widely reported in recent weeks, CNBC and SiliconANGLE reported, both citing a Financial Times report. The news pushed down shares of companies tied to AI infrastructure on Thursday.

The earlier $68 billion figure included gross revenue from OpenAI's partners, which allowed for a more direct comparison with rival Anthropic; the new figure reflects net revenue, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC.

Beyond the new revenue figure, OpenAI pointed to 77% total run-rate growth in the third quarter and 107% run-rate growth for its enterprise business over the same period, according to both CNBC and SiliconANGLE.

AI stocks slide

Shares of CoreWeave, a cloud infrastructure provider for AI workloads, fell nearly 8% on Thursday, the steepest drop among the companies named, according to both outlets. Nvidia, Oracle, Advanced Micro Devices, Broadcom, Intel and Super Micro Computer also declined in the same session, CNBC and SiliconANGLE reported.

Oracle's drop drew particular attention because the company holds contracts worth multiple billions of dollars with OpenAI, according to SiliconANGLE. Advanced Micro Devices and Broadcom each fell about 4%, while Intel and Super Micro Computer declined roughly 5%, CNBC reported.

The Nasdaq fell 1.25% on the day, its worst session since mid-August, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.5%, according to SiliconANGLE. Constellation Research analyst Holger Mueller told the outlet that the episode shows investors "need to do more research" into the AI industry's actual finances before trusting companies' market valuations.

Pressure ahead of an IPO

OpenAI is under pressure to justify its $852 billion valuation ahead of a widely expected initial public offering. The company confidentially filed its prospectus with regulators in June and has signaled it is eyeing a 2027 debut, according to CNBC and SiliconANGLE. In September, chief executive Sam Altman said "right now would be an ill-advised moment" to go public, citing ongoing concerns about AI safety, CNBC reported.

CNBC also notes that OpenAI recently pulled its plans to launch GPT-6.1 Astra, saying the model did not meet its safety standards, one of the episodes feeding the concerns Altman cited.

SiliconANGLE notes that investors had already been questioning whether demand for AI products is strong enough to justify the valuations carried by OpenAI and Anthropic ahead of their IPOs, and cites reports that Anthropic could go public as soon as November 9, just before the Thanksgiving holiday.

Anthropic is also preparing a major IPO of its own and is reportedly seeking a $2 trillion valuation, according to both outlets. In August, the company told investors its annualized revenue run rate had topped $65 billion. Anthropic's 2025 revenue was $4.6 billion, with a net loss of more than $42 billion, according to Reuters, which reviewed a copy of the company's prospectus.

A report by independent financial research firm New Constructs this week called Anthropic's prospective offering "the most ridiculous IPO of 2026" and valued the company at just $150 billion, according to CNBC and SiliconANGLE.

OpenAI is also in early discussions with investors about a new funding round that could raise around $30 billion, though the figure could still change and no term sheet has been finalized, CNBC reported. The company closed a historic $122 billion funding round in March, and chief financial officer Sarah Friar told CNBC last week that OpenAI remains "very well capitalized."

For anyone tracking AI infrastructure stocks, the episode shows how the gap between gross and net revenue can move billion-dollar valuations overnight, right as OpenAI and Anthropic both prepare for initial public offerings.