ChatGPT maker OpenAI’s valuation has surged to $500 billion after employees and former staff cashed out $6.6 billion worth of shares in a secondary sale, a source familiar with the deal told Reuters. With this valuation, the AI giant has left behind SpaceX and ByteDance.The transaction lifts the artificial intelligence company’s value from $300 billion and highlights its rapid growth in both users and revenue. The shares were purchased by investors including Thrive Capital, SoftBank, Dragoneer Investment Group, Abu Dhabi’s MGX and T Rowe Price, the source told Reuters.OpenAI had cleared sales of more than $10 billion of stock on the secondary market, the source added. SoftBank’s participation adds to its earlier investment in OpenAI’s $40 billion primary funding round.Revenue at the company has also been rising sharply. OpenAI generated around $4.3 billion in the first six months of 2025, about 16% higher than its total earnings for the whole of last year, according to the Information.The deal comes as technology firms battle to secure top AI talent with generous pay packages. Meta, for instance, has poured billions into Scale AI and recently lured its 28-year-old founder Alexandr Wang to run its new superintelligence division.