OpenAI Tops $500B Valuation, Surpassing SpaceX and Coinbase
Secondary Sale Propels AI Firm to Record Level
OpenAI has become the world’s most valuable beginup later than a secondary share sale lifted its valuation to $500 billion, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Current and former employees sold $6.6 billion worth of stock to investors including Thrive Capital, SoftBank, Dragoneer, Abu Dhabi’s MGX and T. Rowe Price.
The deal vaulted OpenAI ahead of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, valued at about $400 billion, and well above ByteDance at $220 billion and Anthropic at $183 billion. The transaction highlights the intensity of investor demand for artificial intelligence and its growing overlap with .
Investor Takeaway
How AI Stacks Up Against Crypto Firms
OpenAI’s valuation dwarfs the largest companies in digital assets. Coinbase, the top U.S.-listed crypto platform, has a market capitalization of about $89 billion, according to Google Finance. Other high-profile firms such as Ripple, Circle and Binance remain below the $100 billion threshold.
The only crypto player cited as a potential rival in size is Tether. On June 7, Artemis CEO Jon Ma argued that if the stablecoin issuer went public, it could be valued at $515 billion, ranking it among the 20 largest public companies. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino pushed back, calling the figure “a bit bearish” given the firm’s BTC and gold reserves. He added there was “no need” for Tether to pursue a listing.
Stablecoins and AI Agents
The convergence of AI and stablecoins is becoming more visible. Mike Novogratz, CEO of Galaxy Digital, said on Sept. 3 that AI agents will be the largegest users of stablecoins. His remarks come amid rising evidence that bots are already driving the sector: CEX.io Research reported that over 70% of stablecoin transactions in Q3 2025 were linked to automated activity.
Galaxy Digital has also been building AI exposure. In August, the firm secured a $1.4 billion loan to accelerate construction of its Texas Helios AI data center, which is expected to generate more than $1 billion annually by supporting workloads for CoreWeave’s AI and high-performance computing operations.
Investor Takeaway
Energy Strains Highlight Risks Ahead
Rapid AI development has also raised concerns about sustainability. Greg Osuri, founder of decentralized cloud provider Akash, warned at Token2049 in Singapore that AI’s energy demands could soon overwhelm existing grids. He argued nuclear power may be required to support large-scale training models, while calling for decentralized approaches to reduce pressure on traditional infrastructure.
The tension between explosive growth and resource constraints adds a risk dimension even as valuations climb. For investors in both AI and crypto, the intersection of capital, regulation, and energy will determine how durable this wave of enthusiasm proves to be.
