Who Owns ChatGPT?
Updated onExplore the ownership hierarchy of ChatGPT. See parent companies, holding structures, and ultimate controllers.
Ownership Chain
ChatGPT
ChatGPT is a generative AI chatbot and web and mobile app from OpenAI that provides conversational, multimodal (text, voice, image) assistant capabilities on a freemium subscription model.
Starts at $0 / month
OpenAI
OpenAI is an American artificial intelligence company that develops advanced language, vision, and multimodal models and products such as ChatGPT and the OpenAI API.
Starts at $0 / month
ChatGPT
ChatGPT is a generative AI chatbot and web and mobile app from OpenAI that provides conversational, multimodal (text, voice, image) assistant capabilities on a freemium subscription model.
Starts at $0 / month
OpenAI
OpenAI is an American artificial intelligence company that develops advanced language, vision, and multimodal models and products such as ChatGPT and the OpenAI API.
Starts at $0 / month
Major Shareholders
ChatGPT
Major Shareholders
| Name | Type | Ownership | As of |
|---|---|---|---|
Employees & other private shareholders of OpenAI Group PBC Combined ~47% equity stake in OpenAI Group PBC held by current and former employees and non-Microsoft private investors, per post‑recapitalization ownership disclosures; these holders have economic exposure to ChatGPT through OpenAI’s overall business. | Other | 47.0% | Oct 2025 |
Microsoft Corporation Strategic cloud and product partner that owns roughly 27% of OpenAI Group PBC after the October 2025 recapitalization, making it the largest outside corporate shareholder benefiting from ChatGPT’s economics. | Corporate | 27.0% | Oct 2025 |
OpenAI Foundation Nonprofit parent that holds about 26% of OpenAI Group PBC’s equity and retains control over its board and mission; its stake gives it significant economic and governance influence over ChatGPT. | Other | 26.0% | Oct 2025 |
SoftBank Group Corp. Major institutional investor in OpenAI through a large 2025 primary funding commitment and participation in a $6.6B employee share sale at a $500B valuation; exact percentage ownership is not publicly disclosed but is widely reported to be a significant minority position within the broader employees‑and‑investors pool. | Institutional | — | Oct 2025 |
Thrive Capital Lead venture investor in multiple OpenAI funding rounds, including the 2025 secondary share sale where employees sold about $6.6B of stock; considered one of the largest private shareholders aside from Microsoft and the OpenAI Foundation, though no precise stake has been disclosed. | Institutional | — | Oct 2025 |
OpenAI
Major Shareholders
| Name | Type | Ownership | Voting | As of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Microsoft Corporation Largest single shareholder of OpenAI Group PBC, holding about 27% of equity following the October 28, 2025 recapitalization, according to OpenAI/Microsoft partnership disclosures and independent reporting. | Corporate | 27.0% | 27.0% | Oct 2025 |
OpenAI Foundation Nonprofit parent entity that appoints the board of OpenAI Group PBC and retains special governance rights; it owns roughly 26% of the for‑profit OpenAI Group’s equity after the recapitalization, while still controlling the company despite a minority economic stake. | Institutional | 26.0% | — | Oct 2025 |
OpenAI employees (current and former, collectively) Current and some former employees collectively hold on the order of 25–26% of OpenAI Group PBC’s equity after the 2025 restructuring, based on cap‑table analyses that break down the 47% non‑Microsoft, non‑Foundation ownership between staff and outside investors. | Other | 26.0% | 26.0% | Oct 2025 |
SoftBank Group Corp. Japanese investment conglomerate and a major financial backer of OpenAI and the Stargate infrastructure project. SoftBank’s CFO has said its stake in OpenAI is about 11% following its up‑to‑$30 billion investment and the 2025 recapitalization. | Corporate | 11.0% | 11.0% | Nov 2025 |
Other institutional investors (Thrive Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, MGX, T. Rowe Price, etc.) Represents the combined stake of other institutional shareholders in OpenAI Group PBC—such as Thrive Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, Abu Dhabi’s MGX, T. Rowe Price and others—that participated in recent primary and secondary rounds. Based on public breakdowns, once Microsoft (27%), the OpenAI Foundation (26%), employees (~26%) and SoftBank (~11%) are accounted for, the remaining investors together hold roughly the final ~10% of equity. | Institutional | 10.0% | 10.0% | Oct 2025 |
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