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Musk’s xAI Eyes $170-$200 Billion Valuation in Upcoming Funding Round, Financial Times Reports

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Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI is reportedly preparing to raise additional capital in a funding round that could value the firm between $170 billion and $200 billion, according to the Financial Times, citing sources close to the discussions. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is expected to play a significant role in the round, holding an indirect stake in xAI through its investment in Kingdom Holdings Company, which has put $800 million into the AI startup.

The discussions are still preliminary, and details may evolve, the report noted. Musk himself responded on X, stating that xAI is not currently seeking funding and has sufficient capital. PIF did not immediately comment on the report.

Previously, in June, Morgan Stanley disclosed that xAI completed a $5 billion debt raise along with a separate $5 billion strategic equity investment. The company is aggressively expanding its AI infrastructure with new data centers amid increasing competition in the sector.

xAI acquired X (formerly Twitter) in March, valuing the AI firm at $80 billion and X at $33 billion. Musk founded xAI in July 2023 to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which recently announced plans to raise up to $40 billion at a $300 billion valuation.

According to projections shared by Morgan Stanley, xAI expects to generate over $13 billion in annual earnings by 2029 and anticipates $1 billion in gross revenue by the end of this year. The company also plans to invest $18 billion in data center expansion going forward.

Nvidia briefly hits $4 trillion market value, cementing AI leadership

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Nvidia (NVDA.O) briefly reached a market capitalization of $4 trillion on Wednesday, becoming the first company ever to hit this milestone and reaffirming its dominance in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector. Shares surged as much as 2.8% to an all-time high of $164.42 before closing up 1.8%, giving Nvidia a market value of approximately $3.97 trillion.

This milestone reflects Wall Street’s strong confidence in Nvidia’s leading role in powering AI innovation, with its high-performance chips crucial to advancements in the technology. Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth, remarked that the rally “highlights the fact that companies are shifting their asset spend in the direction of AI,” which he sees as the future of technology.

Nvidia’s stock has seen a remarkable recovery after a slow start in 2025, which was rattled by competition from Chinese AI models like DeepSeek. The company reached a $1 trillion valuation in June 2023 and has since nearly quadrupled in value within about a year—outpacing other tech giants like Apple and Microsoft, the only other U.S. firms with market caps above $3 trillion.

Microsoft, the second most valuable U.S. company, closed Wednesday at $503.51 per share with a $3.74 trillion market cap. Nvidia’s rally has lifted it by approximately 74% from its April lows, coinciding with renewed optimism about U.S. trade relations.

Currently, Nvidia represents 7.3% of the S&P 500 index, slightly more than Apple’s 7% and Microsoft’s 6%. Its valuation now surpasses the combined stock market value of Canada and Mexico, as well as all publicly listed companies in the UK.

Despite its high valuation, Nvidia’s 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio stands at 32, below its three-year average of 37.

While Nvidia’s GPUs dominate AI workloads, rivals such as Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and others are seeking to chip away at its market share by offering more affordable alternatives. Meanwhile, major customers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet face investor pressure to moderate their AI spending.

Nvidia posted $44.1 billion in revenue for the first quarter of 2025, a 69% increase year-on-year. For the second quarter, the company projects revenue around $45 billion, plus or minus 2%, with earnings due on August 27.

Year-to-date, Nvidia’s stock is up about 22%, outperforming the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index’s roughly 15% gain.

OpenAI set to launch AI-powered browser to rival Google Chrome

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OpenAI is reportedly preparing to release a new AI-powered web browser in the coming weeks that aims to challenge Google Chrome’s dominance, according to sources familiar with the matter. The browser will leverage artificial intelligence to transform the way users interact with the web, potentially offering a more integrated experience that keeps some browsing activities within a ChatGPT-style chat interface rather than directing users to external websites.

This move marks a strategic push by OpenAI to gain direct access to user data—an essential asset for competing with Google, whose Chrome browser is a critical component of Alphabet’s advertising business, generating nearly 75% of its revenue. By controlling browsing data, OpenAI could directly rival Google in targeted advertising and user engagement.

With over 500 million weekly active ChatGPT users, OpenAI’s browser has the potential to significantly disrupt Google’s advertising ecosystem. The browser will be built on Chromium, the open-source codebase behind Chrome and other browsers like Microsoft Edge and Opera, allowing OpenAI to control data collection and integration more effectively.

The new browser is also designed to integrate OpenAI’s AI agent tools, such as Operator, enabling automated actions on behalf of users, including booking reservations or filling forms within websites—enhancing convenience and utility.

OpenAI’s founder Sam Altman, who has driven the company’s rapid innovation since ChatGPT’s launch in 2022, is betting on this browser as part of a broader strategy to embed AI deeper into daily personal and work life.

Competition is fierce: Google Chrome currently commands over two-thirds of the global browser market with more than 3 billion users, while Apple’s Safari holds a distant second place with 16%. Other AI-driven browsers like Comet by Perplexity, The Browser Company, and Brave have already launched AI-enhanced browsing experiences.

The Department of Justice’s ongoing antitrust actions against Google—following a ruling that Alphabet holds a monopoly in online search—highlight the regulatory challenges facing the search and browser giant. OpenAI has even expressed interest in acquiring Chrome if forced divestiture occurs.

Unlike merely creating a plug-in for existing browsers, OpenAI’s decision to build its own browser aims to maximize control over user data, a crucial factor for AI’s effectiveness and business value.

OpenAI declined to comment on the launch details.