Stripe eyes $10 billion acquisition of OpenRouter, the AI model marketplace linking developers to LLMs

Stripe reportedly in talks to buy LLM marketplace OpenRouter

Sources told The Wall Street Journal that a sale earn the three-year-old start-up roughly $10bn. Stripe is reportedly in talks to acquire OpenRouter, a New York-based start-up that lets users access several AI models through a unified platform. According to The Wall Street Journal, a transaction could earn OpenRouter roughly $10bn. It was last valued, reportedly, at around $1.3bn following a $113m raise in May led by Alphabet's venture arm CapitalG. Sources told the publication that a deal could be announced soon. SiliconRepublic.com has reached out to Stripe to confirm the validity of the report. Founded in 2023, OpenRouter is a new type of marketplace that offers users access to more than 400 large language models (LLM) from around 70 providers. It routes requests to the best available provider, letting users shop around based on price and other factors. It's the first marketplace set up for LLMs, reflecting a growing appetite for AI models and a fast diversifying market. The company more than doubled its valuation in a year, after reaching the $500m milestone last June. A number of other companies also considered buying OpenRouter, sources further told The Wall Street Journal. The Information also reported over the buzz around the start-up. OpenRouter co-founder and CEO Alex Atallah described his company as an AI equivalent of Stripe, a payments processing platform with an array of different tools for businesses. Prior to his current venture, Atallah founded OpenSea, a similar type of marketplace for non-fungible tokens. OpenRouter already uses Stripe's services for billing, payment collection and tax, among other needs, in a partnership announced early this year. Stripe, meanwhile, is also reportedly considering a joint acquisition of PayPal along with US private equity firm Advent International. Sources told The Wall Street Journal that PayPal is unhappy with the low-ball reported offer of $53bn. Stripe and Advent are considering their next move. Don't miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic's digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.

Stripe Eyes $10 Billion Deal for AI Model Marketplace OpenRouter | PYMNTS.com

The Journal reported Thursday (July 23) that a transaction could be announced soon, though the talks could still collapse or another buyer could step in. The exact price under discussion could not be learned. Several other large technology companies had also been weighing deals for OpenRouter. The startup was valued at $1.3 billion in May, according to PitchBook, meaning a sale near $10 billion would represent a steep markup in a matter of months. Its backers include Menlo Ventures and CapitalG, the growth fund of Google parent Alphabet. OpenRouter sells software that lets customers reach AI models from OpenAI and Anthropic, along with open weight alternatives anyone can download and run. The Journal described the company's position this way: "OpenRouter is part of an emerging crop of startups that have found a lucrative niche between AI developers and the companies that want to use them." The platform lists hundreds of large language models and lets developers compare and switch between them. The strategic logic follows Stripe's recent expansion into AI infrastructure and stablecoin payments. Many companies now want access to a range of AI models to control spending and reduce dependence on any single provider. Stripe and OpenRouter already work together, with OpenRouter using Stripe to collect payments from its customers. Stripe's valuation reached $159 billion earlier this year. On the PayPal front, people familiar with the matter told the Journal that the $53 billion offer was seen as too low, and Stripe and its partner Advent International are considering their next move. PYMNTS has followed Stripe's expansion beyond payment processing closely this year. PYMNTS reported that Stripe and Advent International submitted a joint offer of $60.50 a share for PayPal, backed by roughly $50 billion in committed bank financing, with the two bidders set to hold equal stakes. PYMNTS later reported that PayPal's board considered the bid inadequate, and that directors were weighing financing capability, regulatory review and how long approval might take. The two companies together process about $3.7 trillion a year.