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OpenAI Aims to Raise $30B, Valuation at $1.4T
Private company fundraising this week was led by Instinct's $1B round and notable capital injections into edge AI, data security, brain‑computer interfaces, and real‑estate technology.This week's private company news:Coinbaseisaccess to primary financial markets by bringing initial public offering allocations to U.S. retail traders. Beginning with Oura's IPO this week, eligible customers can request shares at the offer price before open-market trading starts. Users will be able to request allocations directly in the Coinbase app. IPOs are offered via Coinbase Capital Markets. "This is the next step in growing the Everything Exchange as a trusted platform to trade any asset at any stage of its lifecycle," the company said.OpenAI aims to raise at least $30B from investors in a new round of funding, according to people familiar with the matter, after the artificial intelligence startup pushed back its plans for an initial public offering, Bloomberg's Rebecca Torrence, Ed Ludlow and Shirin Ghaffary reports. The company is seeking a valuation of around $1.4T, not including the money raised, said the people, potentially vaulting it back above longtime rival Anthropic's most recent private market valuation.The head of Hypertec Group says data center developer 5C Group may go public as it ramps up its project pipeline, Bloomberg's Mathieu Dion. 5C builds and operates large-scale AI data center campuses in North America. The company formed when Hypertec Cloud spun out of Hypertec Group and acquired 5C Data Centers in 2025, the author notes. "Realistically, the growth trajectory we've seen makes it so we're absolutely considering an IPO," Hypertec Chief Executive Officer Simon Ahdoot said at the Bloomberg Canadian Finance Conference in New York. "That's something that I expect will be in further discussions after we close the current round of financing." Since 2025, 5C has secured more than $1.4B in funding, including equity financing led by Brookfield Asset Managementand debt financing led by Deutsche Bank. Hypertec remains the largest shareholder.Some of the biggest capital raises by private companies this week include:Instinct– The company "building a personal agent for everyday life" announced that it has raised an additional $1B in its latest round from Sequoia Capital, Benchmark Capital, and Coatue to bring useful AI to everyone. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Alphabet, Apple, and Microsoft.SiMa.ai– The Physical AI company announced $150M in Series C financing, bringing the total capital raised to $500M and valuing the company at $1.45B. The round was co-led by Fidelity Management & Research Company and Amplify. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Nvidia, AMD, and Intel.Cyera– The company announced a $400M extension from Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives to its Series G, led by Evolution Equity. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Palo Alto Network, CrowdStrike, and Zscaler.Precision Neuroscience– The brain-computer interface technology company announced that it has closed an oversubscribed $250M Series D financing round, co-led by Pershing Square, the Ackman Oxman Institute, and an undisclosed leading life sciences investment fund. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Medtronic, Abbott, and Boston Scientific.Homeward– The cash-backed real estate financing solutions company announced $120M in equity financing and $330M in asset-backed debt facilities. The new capital will expand Homeward's cash offer and bridge financing solutions, enhance the technology powering its integrated home buying and selling platform, and accelerate growth nationwide across the 48 contiguous states. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Opendoor, Zillow, and Redfin.Unicorns to watch this week:Bedrock Robotics– The autonomous construction‑equipment developer continues to scale after its $270M Series B, which set its valuation at $1.8B. Bedrock is pushing deeper into automated excavation and site‑prep systems as construction robotics adoption accelerates. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Caterpillar, Deere, and Trimble.Spirit AI– The Beijing‑based company, focused on humanoid robotics and physical‑intelligence foundation models, is valued at $1.5B. Spirit AI is part of China's fast‑moving humanoid robotics wave, with growing interest in AI‑native locomotion and manipulation systems. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Tesla, Rockwell Automation, and Intuitive Surgical.AI² Robotics– The company which builds intelligent robots for industrial and service‑sector deployment, holds a valuation of $1.4B. AI² Robotics is expanding its platform for autonomous manipulation and warehouse‑grade robotics. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Teradyneand iRobot.Galaxea AI– The humanoid robotics startup is valued at $1.4B, positioning itself within the emerging class of AI‑driven general‑purpose robots. The company is developing systems that blend embodied AI with high‑dexterity hardware. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include Tesla, Nvidia, and Rockwell Automation.Revel– The company which provides testing and control software for aerospace, defense, and robotics, is valued at $1B. Its platform is gaining traction as demand rises for integrated simulation and verification tools across advanced manufacturing and defense systems. Publicly-traded companies operating in the same space include PTC, Keysight, and Palantir.IPOs to watch:Anthropic– The company is now planning to hold its IPO in November, which is later than the October listing expected by investors,'s Corrie Driebusch, Anissa Gardizy, and Kate Clark, citing people familiar with the matter. The report states that a delayed listing would allow the company to share its Q3 results and show its strong competitive position. Anthropic also intends to meet with investors in the coming days, and the meetings are expected to help the company and its bankers gauge investor appetite for the offering, WSJ noted.Nscale Limited– The company has filed with the SEC for an initial public offering of its ordinary shares. The company intends to apply to list its ordinary shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "NSCL". Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley are listed as the lead bookrunners.Altera Corporation– Altera announced that its parent company has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the proposed public offering of its common stock. "The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. The proposed public offering remains subject to the completion of the SEC review process, as well as market and other conditions," Altera stated. Altera, which provides high-performance, programmable compute and connectivity solutions, is backed by Silver Lake and Intel.Brooks Automation– The company announced that it has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the proposed initial public offering of its common stock. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. The initial public offering is expected to take place after the SEC completes its review process, subject to market and other conditions.Aggreko– The company has applied to list its ordinary shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "AGKO." No amount has been given.CALM Chain– The company has filed for an initial public offering of 5M Class A ordinary shares, representing 24.39% of the company's total Class A ordinary shares issued and outstanding following completion of the offering. The company is offering, on a firm commitment basis, 5M Class A ordinary shares. Following the completion of the offering, 24.39% of the Class A ordinary shares issued and outstanding will be held by public shareholders, assuming the underwriter does not exercise the over-allotment option. The company expects the initial public offering price for the offering will be between $5.00 and $7.00 per Class A ordinary share and it plans to list its Class A shares on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "CCIL"."Private Markets" is The Fly's recurring series of stories on the latest moves in the private sector, largest unicorn companies and initial public offerings to watch. Fly subscribers, add $PRIVATE to your portfolio for alerts on breaking news in the startup and venture capital space.
OpenAI Plans to Raise $30B with Valuation Target of $1.4T
Catch up on the top artificial intelligence news and commentary by Wall Street analysts on publicly traded companies in the space with this daily recap compiled by The Fly.NEW FUNDS:After having pushed back its plans for an initial public offering, OpenAI aims to raise at least $30B from investors in a new round of funding in which it is seeking a valuation of around $1.4T, not including the money raised, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg's Rebecca Torrence, Ed Ludlow and Shirin Ghaffary.GPT-6.1 ASTRA:OpenAI is scuttling the release of its next-generation AI model over safety concerns that researchers brought up during internal testing, The Wall Street Journal's Maxwell Zeff. The ChatGPT maker intended to launch the model, known as GPT-6.1 Astra, in the coming days or weeks, targeting an October rollout, the author says, noting that the move follows a summer punctuated by reports of AI systems going rogue across the industry.AI INFRASTRUCTURE SOLUTIONS:NetAppannounced a strategic collaboration with Supermicroto deliver jointly validated AI infrastructure solutions spanning large-scale AI factories, enterprise deployments, neoclouds, and sovereign AI initiatives. By combining Supermicro's AI-optimized compute and rack-scale systems with the NetApp Platform, the companies will help customers accelerate deployment, improve GPU utilization, strengthen data governance, and reduce operational complexity. NetApp and Supermicro are creating a full-stack foundation for AI that extends beyond high-performance storage. The collaboration brings together Supermicro's rack-scale compute, networking, power, and liquid-cooling expertise with the NetApp Platform's unified data management, cyber resilience, hybrid-cloud leadership, and disaggregated scale.ALWAYS-ON AI AGENTS:OpenAI is introducing "always-on AI agents" dots. "Dots are remarkably capable, always-on agents built to handle everything. They're a whole new way to work with AI-one that gets to know what matters to you, is always working on your behalf, and takes important work off your plate so you get more of your time and attention back," the company said. "Dots are frontier intelligence that have your back. Powered by GPT-6 Astra, they have their own cloud computer, learn from feedback over time, and can work towards your goals 24/7. Through our ecosystem of plugins, they can readily connect to over 4,000 apps, giving them the tools to help wherever you need them. Your dot is always within reach, whether it is through ChatGPT, Slack, or Teams..."Inside OpenAI, we're getting a glimpse of what work looks like when intelligence is always working by your side. A bug appears in Slack, and dots immediately start investigating. A new design arrives, and dots turn it into a working app while the team focuses on customer feedback. A planning cycle gets underway, and dots keep everyone moving in sync toward the deadline. Outside OpenAI, an early tester's dot noticed he'd forgotten to invoice a publication, prepared the invoice, and sent it after his approval. Today, you can start with your primary dot, give it a name, and make it your own. Over time, we envision teams of dots working together on your behalf. We're beginning to roll out dots across Pro, Business Premium, and Enterprise plans in eligible markets. We plan to expand dots to more users soon. We're also sharing a preview of specialist dots with their own identity for access management, IT-provisioned hardware, and support for deep integrations with a company's systems of record to allow them to take on well-defined responsibilities inside organizations."DATA CENTER DEVELOPER IPO:The head of Hypertec Group says data center developer 5C Group may go public as it ramps up its project pipeline, Bloomberg's Mathieu Dion. 5C builds and operates large-scale AI data center campuses in North America. The company formed when Hypertec Cloud spun out of Hypertec Group and acquired 5C Data Centers in 2025, the author notes. "Realistically, the growth trajectory we've seen makes it so we're absolutely considering an IPO," Hypertec Chief Executive Officer Simon Ahdoot said at the Bloomberg Canadian Finance Conference in New York. "That's something that I expect will be in further discussions after we close the current round of financing." Since 2025, 5C has secured more than $1.4B in funding, including equity financing led by Brookfield Asset Managementand debt financing led by Deutsche Bank. Hypertec remains the largest shareholder.PRO TIER:OpenAI's Thibault Sottiaux said in aon X, formerly Twitter, "Tomorrow we are re-opening the Pro $200 subscriptions to new subscribers, but together with it we are also changing how we calculate the usage for it. In effect, if you do the math, it will net out at half the dollar in API spend compared to the old Pro $200 plan."OVERSIGHT:AI research leaders at OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, and Metaare calling for oversight into automated AI research, The Wall Street Journal's Maxwell Zeff. In a paper published Monday, researchers including OpenAI Chief Scientist Jakub Pachocki, Anthropic co-founder Jack Clark, Microsoft Chief Scientific Officer Eric Horvitz and Meta's Vice President of AI Research Dawn Song wrote that automating AI research could set off an "intelligence explosion" and that such a development could compress years of progress into months or less and outpace humans' ability to understand it.
Coinbase Files for U.S. Derivatives Registration
As bitcoin, ethereum and other cryptocurrencies see major legal, institutional, and technological developments, the financial landscape continues to adapt. Stay up on the crypto news that matters with the "Crypto Currents" weekly from The Fly. Also, join us for your essential daily recap, every day at 2 PM ET on FlyCast radio.COINBASE CPO REPORTS FILING FOR EQUITY PERPETUALS:In a Thursday X post, Faryar Shirzad, Chief Policy Officer at Coinbase, stated, "This week @coinbase took the first step to offer them in the U.S on our derivatives exchange by filing notice registration documents with the @SECgov. Equity perps have proven demand internationally, and we're excited at the prospect of a regulated pathway for U.S. investors. The next step is product approval with the @CFTC. The coordination between the SEC and CFTC making this possible is long overdue - and it's exactly what needs to happen for the U.S. to stay competitive on products investors already want. This is only the beginning."On Wednesday, the company announced eligible Canadian traders can now access regulated derivatives contracts on Coinbase. The company said, "Offered through Coinbase Financial Markets, Coinbase is the first major crypto native platform to offer direct native crypto futures in Canada. These capital-efficient perpetual and dated contracts allow sophisticated investors to trade, speculate, and hedge on a platform they already trust."On Monday, Coinbase announced Webulliswith Coinbase as its crypto infrastructure partner. Built on Coinbase's Crypto-as-a-Service platform, Webull Canada will leverage Coinbase's institutional-grade custody and trading services. This expansion follows similar launches in the U.S., Brazil and Australia.Additionally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised the firm's price target on Coinbase to $212 from $184 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm modestly updated its model to better reflect management commentary and Q3 guidance.STRATEGY BUYS MORE BITCOIN:In a Monday regulatory filing, Strategyannounced an update on its bitcoin holdings. The company reportedat an average purchase price of $80,318 between August 24 and August 30. As of August 30, Strategy holds 845,050 bitcoin acquired for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $63.73B.The company also noted that, as part of its capital framework, Strategy maintains a U.S. dollar reserve, which is intended to support the payment of dividends on Strategy's preferred stock and interest on its outstanding indebtedness, and "USD Cash", which management maintains to deploy for broader general Bitcoin Treasury Company purposes, which may include acquiring bitcoin, expanding the USD Reserve, broader capital management uses, and other similar purposes. As of August 30, the balances of the USD Reserve and USD Cash were $5.1B and $1.61B, respectively. These amounts include expected cash proceeds from shares sold under Strategy's ATM that had not yet settled as of such date.Following the filing, Alliance Global initiated coverage of Strategy with a Buy rating and $217 price target. The company's bitcoin holdings total 845,050, making it the largest holder and representing 4% of the entire supply of the cryptocurrency in existence, the analyst said. Alliance expects a "bull run" in bitcoin over the next 6-18 months given "scarcity and increased demand as the regulatory picture becomes clearer." Strategy is creating yield that results in outperformance compared to bitcoin, contended the firm.B. Riley raised the firm's price target on Strategy to $175 from $155 and kept a Buy rating on the shares. The firm increased targets across its digital asset treasury coverage to reflect token appreciation quarter-to-date, accumulation pace, preferred issuance, and at-the-market usage. Digital assets "re-rated sharply over the past two weeks on a macro-driven liquidity impulse," driven by the Treasury's announcement on August 18 of larger long-end buybacks beginning September 9, an SEC token proposal, and a White House crypto summit alongside renewed presidential pressure on the CLARITY Act, the analyst said. Riley adds that $2.7B of shorts were liquidated in the first 24 hours of the move.B. Riley also raised the firm's price target on Bitmine ImmersiontoNakamototoSolana Companyto, Strivetoand Forward IndustriestoThe firm kept a Buy rating on all the names.BITDEER ANNOUNCES SELL-OUT OF MALAYSIA DATA CENTER:Bitdeer AIannounced Monday that it hasfor AI Cloud business ahead of energization in 1Q27. Inclusive of the offtake commitment announced on August 19, Bitdeer AI has now entered into five-year long term offtake commitments with total expected revenue of over $800M at this site. As a general matter, Bitdeer AI seeks to structure its AI cloud contracts so that customer prepayments are expected to cover more than 50% of the associated capital expenditure. These contracts are not expected to have a revenue impact in 2026. Revenue and associated costs are expected to begin in 1Q27, when services commence. Bitdeer AI is targeting 350MW of AI Cloud data center capacity to be delivered by 1Q28.The company also announced on Tuesday the acquisition of 200 acres of land in Milam County, Texas, near the company's existing Rockdale facility. Bitdeer has completed the fee simple acquisition of approximately 200 acres of greenfield property for total consideration of approximately $100M, paid in cash. The Milam County sites, including the New Parcel, currently feature approximately 563 MW of interconnected grid capacity with existing plans expected to scale to 742 MW, and a dedicated water supply. Following this transaction, Bitdeer owns and/or operates approximately 255 acres and 742 MW of existing and pipeline power capacity in Milam County, and approximately 3.0 GW of total power capacity across its global site portfolio."Securing outright ownership of land in Milam County reflects the disciplined approach we're taking to expanding powered land under our control," said Michael Potter, CFO. "Rockdale is one of the best-connected locations in our portfolio, and we believe it is well positioned to receive additional power over the coming years. Owning this land gives us greater long-term certainty over our development plans, eliminates the renewal risk associated with a lease, and provides flexibility to maintain our existing Bitcoin mining operations while we develop the newly acquired property. It's a continuation of the progress we've been making across our platform to put Bitdeer in direct control of the sites that matter most to our growth."Keefe Bruyette said Bitdeer's Rockdale land acquisition is a "positive step for unlocking" the company's AI opportunities. The $100M purchase price is below Keefe's expectation, but it remains unclear whether the Service Line Replacement-controlled interconnection rights were transferred in the transaction, the analyst said. The firm kept a Market Perform rating on Bitdeer with a $10 price target.CIRCLE PRESIDENT TESTIFIES IN FAVOR OF GENIUS ACT:Circle Internetpresident Heath Tarbert testified before the House Financial Services Committee towhich establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins covering reserve requirements, redemption at par, and disclosures that becomes effective no later than January 27, according to media reports. In his testimony, Tarbert described stablecoins as necessary tools for preserving U.S. dollar dominance in future global payment systems, adding that the U.S. should close offshore loopholes, according to 24/7 Wall Street.INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS PLAN STABLECOIN ENTERPRISE:Twenty‑one leading international financial institutions announced Tuesday that they have committed to establish a new company in 2H26, subject to closing conditions, toThe new company, whose name will be announced in due course, intends to operate globally, with its initial focus on a USD‑denominated stablecoin offering and a longer‑term ambition of expanding issuance into stablecoins denominated in additional G7 currencies, with a EUR offering as a priority.The companies said, "The initiative will draw on the expertise of the participant institutions to offer a safe, robust and trusted solution that combines bank‑grade compliance, strong governance, distribution and institutional risk management. The product will be utilised in a variety of use cases covering wholesale, institutional and retail markets where client benefits can be achieved by utilizing a trusted form of digital money, including cross-border payments and digital asset settlements."The group aims for its stablecoin solution to go to market in 1H27. The group comprises financial institutions headquartered across major geographies, namely: North America: Bank of America, Capital One, Citi, Fidelity Investments, Goldman Sachs, PNC Financial Services, Scotiabank, TD Bank Group, Wells Fargo, WisdomTree; Europe: Banco Santander, BBVA, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, Lloyds Banking Group, Coöperatieve Rabobank U.A., UBS; East Asia: MUFG Bank; Middle East: Sirius International Holding; Africa: Standard Bank. The initiative intends to be GENIUS Act and MiCA‑compliant, as applicable. The group will continue to keep appropriate parties updated as the initiative progresses.OTHER CRYPTO NEWS:BitGoopens Singapore office,Strivepurchases 1,800 BTC, reportsHyperscale Dataceases BTC mining operations in Michigan, holdsBitmine ImmersionannouncesGalaxy Digitalprice targetat Morgan StanleyEightco HoldingsreportsSecuritizepartners with Socios.com to, signs MoU with Dubai's VARA to support advancement of tokenizationBitFuFuannouncesSoFi, Payward partner toKeefe views pact as positive developmentCango'sEcoHashat Georgia facilityCurrenc Capital, Mint partner toC1 Fundinitiatedon private market holdingsHyperliquid, Payward reportedlyCRYPTO STOCK PLAYS:Publicly traded companies in the space include Bit Digital, Coinbase, Core Scientific, Mara Holdings, Strategy, Riot Platformsand TeraWulf.PRICE ACTION:As of time of writing, bitcoin rose roughly 1% this week to $79,330 in U.S. dollars, according to CoinDesk.
Deutsche Bank Revives Energy Trading Business
Deutsche Bank (DB) is making a big push to re-establish its energy trading business over a decade after it largely exited the commodities sector, having tapped former Goldman Sachs (GS) traders Madhav Janakiraman and Benoit Bosc as well as two senior Morgan Stanley (MS) commodity sales execs as part of such efforts, Bloomberg's Devika Krishna Kumar and Jack Farchy report, citing people familiar with the matter. The traders will work under former Morgan Stanley commodities boss Kow Atta-Mensah, who joined Deutsche earlier this year, the authors note. "We've seen strong demand from our corporate clients for energy solutions in recent years. Given this, and the strategic importance of energy, we are further building up our capabilities so that we can support our corporate clients globally," a Deutsche Bank spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
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