OpenAI has reportedly completed a $7 billion tender offer to buy shares from its employees, giving staff an opportunity to cash out part of their holdings in the privately held artificial intelligence company.

Bloomberg reported that the transaction valued OpenAI at $852 billion, matching the valuation from the company’s most recent fundraising round in March.

That funding round reportedly raised $122 billion for the AI company.

The employee share sale comes as OpenAI considers its longer-term plans for a possible public listing.

The company confidentially filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in June to prepare for a potential initial public offering (IPO) later this year.

However, the completion of the tender offer could indicate that an IPO is not imminent.

Private share sales have become an increasingly common way for employees of major technology companies to realise the value of their stock compensation without waiting for the company to go public.

OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

IPO plans remain uncertain

The reported transaction also comes as OpenAI works to strengthen its business strategy and financial performance ahead of any potential public offering.

Last month, OpenAI chief executive officer Sam Altman acknowledged that the company had not experienced its strongest year, saying the next 12 months were expected to be better.

Companies preparing to list on public markets typically seek to demonstrate strong financial performance to attract investors.

The Wall Street Journal reported in April that OpenAI had fallen short of some of its internal financial targets.

OpenAI’s rapid growth and expanding portfolio of AI products are expected to attract significant investor interest if the company eventually proceeds with an IPO.

Competition in the sector could also influence the timing.

Anthropic, one of OpenAI’s major rivals, was reportedly profitable earlier this year and could potentially enter public markets before OpenAI.

The reported employee tender therefore provides another indication that OpenAI may wait for its current strategy to gain traction before pursuing a public listing.

The company has been working to narrow its focus, including placing greater emphasis on its enterprise business, as it seeks to strengthen its commercial position.