OpenAI’s reported annualized revenue figure fell from about $70 billion to about $50 billion in October 2026 reporting because the two numbers use different presentations of some cloud-partner sales. Axios described the earlier $70 billion figure as a comparison-oriented gross-up intended to align more closely with Anthropic’s method—not as a replacement audited revenue result. The reported figures are estimates, not equivalent measures of revenue booked over a completed year.
Why did OpenAI’s reported figure change from $70 billion to $50 billion?
Axios reported on October 8, 2026, that OpenAI’s annualized revenue was about $50 billion, roughly $20 billion below the previously reported $70 billion figure. Axios said the earlier figure was an effort to gross up OpenAI’s revenue for a more direct comparison with Anthropic. The two amounts therefore reflect different presentations, not a public audited reconciliation or a simple correction of one figure by the other. Axios’s October 8 report is the source for both estimates and that explanation.
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“Annualized revenue” or “run rate” extrapolates a recent pace across a year. It does not mean that the company actually earned that amount during a completed twelve-month period. The October figures should be read as reported estimates of annualized revenue, not audited annual results.
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The reported difference is about whether certain partner-channel sales appear on the income statement gross or net. Under the explanation Axios reported, Anthropic counts the full customer payment as revenue and records the cloud provider’s share as an expense. OpenAI records only its own share of certain partner sales as revenue. Axios’s September 2026 explainer describes this distinction.
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A simplified example shows why the presentation matters: if a customer pays $100 through a cloud partner and the provider keeps $20, a gross presentation could report $100 of revenue and $20 of expense; a net presentation could report $80 of revenue. The customer payment and provider’s share have not changed, but the top-line revenue figure has. This example illustrates the accounting distinction; it is not a disclosed transaction amount for either company.
The relevant accounting question is whether the company acts as the principal or as an agent in the transaction. That assessment depends on the facts, including who controls the customer relationship and who is responsible for delivering the service. Axios quoted accounting professor Francine McKenna discussing those criteria in its September explainer. Both companies may comply with GAAP while reaching different conclusions for transactions whose contracts and responsibilities differ. A difference in presentation alone does not establish that either company misstated revenue.
What Anthropic revenue figures have been reported?
Anthropic’s reported numbers vary by date and measurement period. Its own announcements describe company-reported run rates; other figures below were reported by Axios based on Bloomberg reporting. They should not be treated as directly interchangeable.
| Figure | What it measures and who reported it |
|---|---|
| $14 billion | Anthropic’s company-reported current run rate in its 2026 Series G announcement; a run-rate estimate, not audited annual revenue. Anthropic’s Series G announcement |
| More than $11.5 billion | Preliminary second-quarter 2026 revenue attributed by Axios to Bloomberg reporting. This is a reported preliminary amount for a quarter, not a run rate or an audited full-year result. Axios’s August 2026 report |
| Above $65 billion | Anthropic’s July 2026 run rate, also attributed by Axios to Bloomberg reporting. It extrapolates a recent pace rather than stating revenue earned during the full year. Axios’s August 2026 report |
| Above $65 billion for Anthropic; above $40 billion for OpenAI | Annualized figures cited by Axios in September 2026. Axios cautioned that they were not apples-to-apples; its report said the accounting presentation could not explain the entire reported $25 billion difference based on information then available. Axios’s September 2026 explainer |
Anthropic’s Series G announcement also said its run-rate revenue had grown more than 10 times annually in each of the preceding three years. It reported more than 500 customers spending over $1 million annually on an annualized basis, up from 12 two years earlier. Those are company-reported growth and customer metrics, not audited comparisons with OpenAI.
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Anthropic has also reported historical run-rate milestones of approximately $1 billion at the beginning of 2025 and more than $5 billion in August 2025. These are dated company-reported figures, not amounts earned during a full year. Anthropic’s 2025 Series F announcement gives those milestones.
Are the companies’ revenue figures comparable?
Not without aligning the definitions first. A valid comparison needs to establish whether each figure is booked revenue for the same completed period or an annualized run rate, how partner sales are presented, which channels and revenue streams are included, and the date and length of the measurement window. The public reports cited here do not provide a complete reconciliation across those dimensions.
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Accounting presentation can explain part of a top-line gap, but not necessarily the whole gap. In September, Axios cited an unnamed source familiar with Anthropic’s finances for an estimate that net presentation might reduce Anthropic’s reported figure by about 6%–10%. That was an attributed estimate, not a verified adjustment. The same report said the known accounting difference could not account for the full reported $25 billion gap on the information then available.
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Revenue is not profit, cash flow, or valuation. A run-rate headline by itself does not show how much revenue was actually booked, what it cost to generate, or whether the business is profitable. For a useful comparison, investors should look for figures covering the same completed period and accounting basis, then assess expenses and cash needs alongside revenue.
The underlying contracts, accounting memoranda, current-period audited financial statements, and any SEC correspondence were not available in the cited reports. The exact reconciliation, the scope of each company’s partner-channel sales, and whether both companies used a common measurement window therefore remain unsettled. The reported $50 billion and $70 billion OpenAI figures should be understood as differently presented annualized estimates—not as interchangeable audited results.
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