OpenAI Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar expressed doubts about the company's readiness for an IPO in 2026. Her position conflicts with the plans of Sam Altman, who insists on entering the market in the fourth quarter. Fryer's main concerns revolve around the scale of organizational and regulatory preparation required for a company that has committed to investing more than $600 billion in cloud infrastructure over five years.

OpenAI's financial situation raises questions. Internal projections suggest the company could burn through more than $200 billion before achieving positive cash flow. In 2026 alone, losses could reach about $14 billion. However, the company's monthly revenue is about $2 billion, which is not enough to cover such large-scale expenses.

Fryer also pointed out the risks associated with the current financing structure. Much of the $122 billion raised in the latest round came from Amazon and Nvidia, which are both chip and cloud providers for OpenAI. This dependence on investor-suppliers creates vulnerability for the company. In addition, a strategic partnership with Microsoft, the largest partner and cloud service provider, is also considered a potential risk.

 Illustration: Sora

Internal disagreements are exacerbated by organizational changes. As of August 2025, Fryer no longer reports directly to Altman, but instead reports to Fidji Simo, who is currently on medical leave. This breaks the standard corporate structure where the CFO reports to the CEO. Moreover, Fryer has been excluded from key financial discussions, raising questions about her role in decision-making.

OpenAI has already begun preparations for the IPO, hiring law firms and also holding preliminary talks with investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. Altman is aiming to beat rival Anthropic, which is also considering going public in the fourth quarter.

Importantly, however, public markets will require OpenAI to be more transparent and strictly compliant with regulations. This includes auditing financial statements, regular reports to analysts and strong corporate governance mechanisms.