The generative AI frenzy unleashed by ChatGPT in 2022 has propelled a handful of venture-backed companies to eye-watering valuations.
Leading the pack is OpenAI, which raised US$40 billion in its latest funding round at a US$300 billion valuation – unprecedented largesse in Silicon Valley’s history.
Other AI giants are following suit. Anthropic now commands a US$61.5 billion valuation, while Elon Musk’s xAI is reportedly in talks to raise US$20 billion at a US$120 billion price tag.
The stakes have grown so high that even major venture capital firms – the same ones that helped birth the internet revolution – can no longer compete.
Mostly, only the deepest pockets remain in the game: Big Tech companies, Japan’s SoftBank Group and Middle Eastern investment funds betting big on a post-fossil fuel future.
