OpenAI Makes Image Generator Accessible to all User as it Raises $40 Billion to Build AGI

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has said that the AI startup has made its new image generator tool accessible to all users. According to Yahoo Finance, accessibility of the feature was previously limited to paying ChatGPT users only.
OpenAI’s image generator runs on the GPT-4o model.The AI startup availed its OpenAI text-to-image model at a time when it has closed a $40 billion funding round.

High Demand

OpenAI AI image tool gained popularity among users soon after its launch. Altman said demand for the tool was so high, that GPUs at the startup were melting. It quickly became the go-to option for converting images, raising concerns regarding the data used to train the AI model and copyright issues.

Some users used the image generator to create fake receipts, including restaurant bills. According to an OpenAI spokesperson, these images had metadata- which proved that they were generated using ChatGPT. OpenAI said that it takes actions where images generated using its AI tool violate its guidelines.

No one knows the limits for ChatGPT image generation, particularly for the free version. However, Altman had capped the limit to three pieces per day

New Funding

As it gave its OpenAI DALL·E update, the ChatGPT announced that it had closed a $40 billion funding round at a $300 billion valuation.

“Today we’re announcing new funding—$40 billion at a $300 billion post-money valuation, which enables us to push the frontiers of AI research even further, scale our compute infrastructure, and deliver increasingly powerful tools for the 500 million people who use ChatGPT every week,” OpenAI said in a statement.

The latest funding round was led by SoftBank, a Japanese tech investment company with backers like Microsoft participating. The new OpenAI funding is the largest financing by a private tech company on record. The $300 billion valuation places OpenAI among the world’s most valuable private companies. Open AI plans to use the new funding to advance AI in sectors like education and build artificial general intelligence.

We’re excited to be working in partnership with SoftBank Group—few companies understand how to scale transformative technology like they do. Their support will help us continue building AI systems that drive scientific discovery, enable personalized education, enhance human creativity, and pave the way toward AGI that benefits all of humanity.

Significant Growth

OpenAI has experienced significant growth in recent months. Between December 2024 and February this year, the AI startup’s user base grew by 33%. OpenAI experienced this growth irrespective of the market disruption that Chinese AI startup DeepSeek caused last month. OpenAI’s user growth was evidenced by the increase in the number of weekly active users. According to the company’s CFO Brad Lightcap, the US-based tech company had 400 million weekly users in February, up from 300 million in December 2024.

The AI startup has also developed several strategic partnerships, the most notable one being with the Japanese tech investment giant SoftBank. Through this partnership, OpenAI plans to take its AI technology to the Japanese market by developing AI models. Last month, SoftBank started implementing plans to set up a key AI operation in Japan, paying $676 million to acquire a plant previously owned by electronics firm Sharp in Sakai city, Osaka. The plant will be converted into an AI data center.

SoftBank and OpenAI set up a joint venture called SB OpenAI Japan in which they hold equal shares. The two companies will use the joint venture to train AI models using customer data acquired through marketing, human resources and other activities. SB OpenAI Japan will then develop and market customized AI agents to customers.