OpenAI, the artificial intelligence research company behind ChatGPT, announced Friday it will transition from a nonprofit-controlled corporation to a standalone for-profit entity, claiming this restructuring will help better serve its mission of benefiting humanity.
The company plans to incorporate as a Delaware Public Benefit Corporation, a designation that allows boards to consider impacts on stakeholders beyond just shareholders. This comes roughly a year after OpenAI's nonprofit board attempted to remove CEO Sam Altman, citing concerns about prioritizing profits over the public good mission.
According to OpenAI's announcement, the current structure limited the board's ability to work with financial backers. The reorganization will enable the company to raise substantial additional funding while maintaining what it describes as its core mission of developing artificial general intelligence (AGI) to benefit everyone.
The nonprofit arm of OpenAI, which previously oversaw the company, will receive shares in the new for-profit entity but will no longer have oversight responsibilities. OpenAI states this will make it "one of the best-resourced non-profits in history," allowing it to pursue charitable initiatives in healthcare, education, and science.
Industry reports suggest OpenAI and Microsoft define AGI achievement in notably commercial terms - as systems capable of generating at least $100 billion in profits. This metric appears to align with the company's increasingly profit-focused direction.
The nonprofit previously utilized $137 million in donations from tech leaders like Elon Musk, along with over $100 million in computing resources from major tech companies, to develop AI systems that now generate revenue for for-profit entities.
While OpenAI maintains this restructuring will advance its mission of universal benefit, the move represents a clear shift toward prioritizing commercial interests and the ability to raise capital at a massive scale.