SAN FRANCISCO, September 13: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has ruled out taking the company public in 2026, saying the current moment is unsuitable for an IPO as concerns intensify over the safety of increasingly powerful artificial intelligence systems.
In an interview published by Fortune, Altman said OpenAI does not feel pressure to list and argued that even a 10% probability of advanced AI causing human extinction would be unacceptable, calling for stronger coordination between AI companies and governments.
OpenAI IPO Ruled Out for 2026
Asked directly whether OpenAI could still launch an initial public offering this year, Altman said 2026 was no longer under consideration.
He described the present environment as an “ill-advised” time to go public because OpenAI still faces significant work around AI safety, alignment and governance. Altman did not commit to an IPO in 2027 or provide another specific timetable.
The comments effectively cool speculation that one of the world’s most valuable private technology companies could enter public markets this year.
AI Extinction Risk Cannot Be Ignored, Altman Says
Altman’s remarks went beyond IPO timing and focused heavily on the potential dangers posed by advanced AI.
He said that if there were even a 10% chance that AI development could ultimately result in human extinction, that level of risk would be unacceptable and would require urgent action rather than being treated as an ordinary business risk.
His warning comes amid a wider debate within the technology industry over whether frontier AI systems are advancing faster than researchers and regulators can develop reliable safeguards.
Pressure Grows for Stronger AI Regulation
Calls for tighter oversight have increased in the United States following warnings from researchers and industry leaders about the possibility of highly capable AI systems behaving in unpredictable or uncontrollable ways.
Altman said AI companies and governments need to work together on safeguards rather than leaving individual laboratories to manage the risks independently.
OpenAI separately said this week that it supports mandatory capability-based national AI safety requirements in the United States and independent safety assessments for advanced systems.
Rival AI Leaders Also Call for Caution
OpenAI is not alone in expressing concern over the speed of AI development.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has called for the industry to give safety mechanisms more time to catch up with rapidly advancing AI capabilities. His proposals include stronger external evaluations and greater international coordination on frontier systems.
The growing agreement among competing AI companies marks a notable shift from the industry’s earlier emphasis on racing to build increasingly capable models.
IPO Delay Highlights Tension Between Growth and Safety
An OpenAI IPO has been closely watched because of the company’s rapid growth and enormous investor interest in artificial intelligence.
Going public would provide greater access to capital but would also bring quarterly shareholder expectations and additional commercial pressures. Altman suggested that OpenAI may need the freedom to make decisions that prioritise long-term safety even when those decisions do not maximise short-term financial returns.
For now, OpenAI’s immediate focus appears to remain on improving safeguards, alignment research and cooperation with policymakers rather than preparing for a 2026 stock-market debut.
source – Reuters / Fortune / OpenAI
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