OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company led by Sam Altman, has issued a public alert to investors, warning against unauthorized offers to purchase its equity. The company, which remains privately held, stressed that any sale or transfer of its shares without explicit written consent is invalid and could expose buyers and sellers to legal consequences.
In a blog post, OpenAI acknowledged that while not every offer of its equity is problematic, there are individuals and entities attempting to exploit investor interest by promising access to the company's shares through unofficial channels. The post noted that any transfer attempt lacking OpenAI's written approval is "void" and would carry "no economic value" to the purchaser.
The warning comes amid a surge of speculative interest in AI companies, with some investors resorting to unconventional methods to gain exposure. One such method involves special purpose vehicles (SPVs), which pool funds from multiple investors to acquire stakes in private companies. However, industry insiders caution that many SPV pitches are dubious and may impose excessive fees or unfavorable terms.
Rising Concerns Over SPV Schemes
Ankur Nagpal, founder of the personal finance platform Carry, described the trend as "a new version of the age-old racket of charging people egregious fees for access to investments they may not otherwise have." He added that such investments, on average, do not outperform.
Leslie Feinzaig, a partner at early-stage venture capital firm Graham and Walker, likened the current environment to the "wild west," noting that the hype surrounding AI has created fertile ground for potential grift. "AI is going to create multiple trillion-dollar companies, and there's just a lot of expectations and a lot of hype surrounding it," she said. "I have an assumption that there's a lot of grift."
Business Insider reported that more than a dozen founders and investors have been inundated with cold pitches for SPVs in companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, highlighting the prevalence of these offers.
Legal and Financial Risks
OpenAI's blog post also cautioned that unauthorized transfers may violate U.S. federal and state securities laws, which impose significant restrictions on the transfer of privately offered equity. The company warned that buyers or sellers could face liability for such violations, and that transfers may be rescinded.
The company stated its intention to "vigorously enforce" the transfer restrictions applicable to any direct or indirect sales of its equity and urged individuals who receive such pitches to report them directly to OpenAI.
Angel investor Sarah Guo echoed these concerns in a recent post on X, describing the proliferation of "bottom feeding multi layered SPV brokers" as a dangerous trend. "The feeding frenzy for ownership in the AI labs has spawned a set of bottom feeding multi layered SPV brokers that have no relationship with the company, and straight up grifters," she wrote. "Careful of that nonsense."
For investors, the message is clear: any offer to buy OpenAI equity outside of official channels is not only risky but likely invalid. As the company continues to attract attention, the importance of verifying the legitimacy of any investment opportunity cannot be overstated.
