OpenAI has issued a clear statement distancing itself from Robinhood's recent move to offer tokenized versions of private company shares, including those of OpenAI, to investors in the European Union. The artificial intelligence studio emphasized it has not collaborated with the trading platform and urged caution among potential investors.
“These ‘OpenAI tokens’ are not OpenAI equity. We did not partner with Robinhood, were not involved in this, and do not endorse it. Any transfer of OpenAI equity requires our approval — we did not approve any transfer. Please be careful,” OpenAI stated on X[1][3][5].
Robinhood, led by CEO Vlad Tenev, recently announced the introduction of “stock tokens” for over 200 private companies, including ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and other major firms like SpaceX, Microsoft, and Nvidia. These tokenized assets have been deployed on the Arbitrum blockchain, and are aimed at providing European users exposure to U.S. stock and ETF prices without purchasing actual shares[1][3].
OpenAI reinforced that any transfer of its equity requires company approval, which was not granted in the Robinhood offering. The company emphasized that these tokens do not grant ownership or rights connected to OpenAI’s actual shares, and do not constitute an official partnership[1][3][5].
The broader finance industry is watching closely, as organizations like the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) have called on regulators to scrutinize tokenized equity products and ensure such platforms operate with full transparency[3].
As innovative investment products like tokenized equities continue to grow, OpenAI’s public statement highlights the need for cautious engagement and regulatory clarity.
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