OpenAI Startup Fund, an early-stage AI investor in partnership with OpenAI, recently disclosed in financial filings that it has raised more than $44 million for its fifth special purpose vehicle (SPV). This is the largest to date.
The fund, established in 2021, has an unusual structure. Although it uses the name OpenAI, OpenAI says it is not an investor. Initially legally controlled by OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman, the company's website states that external LPs, including OpenAI's big backer Microsoft and “other OpenAI partners,” It is said that the funds were raised from. Altman transferred legal control to general partner Ian Hathaway earlier this year.
VCs typically use SPVs to pool money from investors and invest it outside of their main fund. However, the foundation remains silent about the exact purpose of these funds.
An OpenAI spokesperson told TechCrunch that the SPV “will be used to support a variety of existing portfolio companies and make new investments.”
“SPVs allow us to opportunistically allocate capital to high-potential investments.”
The fund, founded in 2021, has effectively remained an SPV this year, currently disclosing five separate vehicles totaling $114.2 million.
SPV I, January 2024: $10 million SPV II, April 2024: $24,999,947 (originally disclosed as $15 million, later revised) SPV III, May 2024: $5,000,000 (as reported by TechCrunch) SPV IV, July 2024: $29,916,411 SPV V, December 2024: $44,281,693
Despite its high activity, its website is sparse and its latest news is a year old. The website only lists a small number of its investments, including legal AI startup Harvey and AI note-taking app Mem.
However, the fund is more active than its website indicates. Notable investments this year include Thrive Health, an AI health venture from Sam Altman and Arianna Huffington, and hot outbound startup Unify.
The fund is also a seed investor in Anysphere, which is currently in the midst of a VC bidding war thanks to its AI code assistant Cursor.
All of these SPVs exceed the fund's initial capital of $175.25 million raised in October 2021.