OpenAI Caps Revenue Share Payments to Microsoft in Deal Shake-Up
SAN FRANCISCO — OpenAI is capping the revenue share payments Microsoft receives under their partnership, restructuring the financial terms of one of the AI industry’s most prominent deals, according to CNBC (https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/27/openai-microsoft-partnership-revenue-cap.html), which reported the development Sunday.
The revised terms come months after OpenAI completed its corporate restructuring in October 2025, which converted the AI lab from a capped-profit entity into a more traditional corporate structure. The partnership renegotiation suggests the original broad agreement announced at that time has undergone material changes, CNBC reported.
Microsoft, which has invested more than $13 billion in OpenAI since 2019 and serves as the company’s primary cloud computing provider through Azure, had previously secured revenue share arrangements tied to OpenAI’s commercial products, including ChatGPT and its enterprise API offerings.
The cap on revenue share payments represents a shift in the financial dynamics between the two companies. For Microsoft, which has built significant portions of its AI strategy around the OpenAI partnership — integrating the company’s models into its Copilot products, Azure cloud services and Office suite — the restructured terms could affect long-term revenue projections from the arrangement.
For OpenAI, limiting its financial obligations to Microsoft provides greater flexibility as the company scales its commercial operations and pursues what CEO Sam Altman has described as an increasingly capital-intensive path toward artificial general intelligence. The company has been raising additional funding at valuations exceeding $100 billion and has sought to diversify its cloud infrastructure relationships.
The renegotiation arrives amid heightened competition in the AI industry. Google, Anthropic, Meta and a growing field of well-funded startups are vying for enterprise AI market share, making the economics of major partnerships increasingly consequential.
The original Microsoft-OpenAI deal was struck when OpenAI operated at a far smaller scale. The AI lab’s revenue has since grown to billions of dollars annually, according to CNBC. The revised terms update the partnership’s financial structure to reflect the current scope of OpenAI’s commercial operations.
Neither OpenAI nor Microsoft immediately responded to requests for comment on the specific terms of the restructured agreement.
The restructured deal comes as regulators in both the U.S. and U.K. have previously examined the Microsoft-OpenAI relationship. The Federal Trade Commission and the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority have both reviewed aspects of Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI, though neither has taken formal enforcement action to date.
Details on the precise cap amount and timeline for the restructured payments were not immediately available.
