OpenAI offers PE firms a 17.5% guaranteed return to win enterprise joint venture deals over Anthropic

OpenAI is sweetening its pitch to private equity firms including TPG and Advent by offering a guaranteed minimum return of 17.5% and early access to its newest AI models as part of a joint venture structure aimed at deploying AI tools across PE-owned portfolio companies, according to people familiar with the talks. Anthropic is pursuing a similar strategy with firms including Blackstone, Hellman & Friedman, and Permira, but has offered no such guaranteed return, putting pressure on OpenAI to differentiate its offer as both companies race to lock in enterprise customers ahead of potential IPOs this year. At least two PE firms, including Thoma Bravo, declined to participate after raising concerns about long-term profit profiles, with some investors arguing that large buyout firms already have direct access to both AI companies without committing capital.