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After nearly a year of negotiations with regulators, OpenAI has finalized its transformation into a public benefit corporation. The company announced a new OpenAI Non-profit Foundation that will oversee its charitable mission.

The restructuring marks a significant time in the company’s evolution. OpenAI is balancing its for-profit ambitions with renewed commitments to public good and AI safety.

OpenAI Non-Profit Foundation Major Restructure 

In an announcement on Tuesday, OpenAI confirmed that it has divided into two entities: a for-profit arm called OpenAI Group PBC, and a nonprofit foundation called the OpenAI Foundation.

The nonprofit now holds a $130 billion stake in the for-profit enterprise—just below Microsoft’s $135 billion stake, representing 32.5% ownership.

According to OpenAI’s official blog post, “The OpenAI Foundation and OpenAI Group will work in concert to advance solutions to hard problems and opportunities posed by AI progress.”

The company emphasized that its core goals remain focused on “making intelligence a tool that everyone can benefit from,” as well as “building safe and aligned systems, turbocharging scientific discovery, and strengthening global cooperation and resilience.”

Attorney General Praises Safety Commitments

California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that his office had reached an agreement with OpenAI, ensuring that its restructuring complied with state nonprofit laws.

“We secured concessions that ensure charitable assets are used for their intended purpose, safety will be prioritized, as well as a commitment that OpenAI will remain right here in California,” Bonta said in a statement to TIME. “With these important concessions in place, we will not be in court opposing OpenAI’s recapitalization plan.”

Bonta’s approval followed nearly a year of review by the California and Delaware Attorneys General, who had expressed concern about the nonprofit’s transition to a for-profit structure.

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Microsoft’s Expanding Role in OpenAI

Since first investing in OpenAI in 2019, Microsoft has been its most significant backer. With this restructuring, Microsoft’s total investment has now reached $135 billion, solidifying its position as a key strategic partner.

OpenAI’s blog post noted, “Since 2019, Microsoft and OpenAI have shared a vision to advance artificial intelligence responsibly and make its benefits broadly accessible.” The statement added that their new agreement “sets the stage for long-term success for both organizations.”

For more on the company’s partnership history, see TIME’s coverage: OpenAI Reorganizes With $135 Billion Microsoft Stake.

OpenAI non-profit Foundation to Target Health and AI Resilience

The newly created OpenAI Foundation will direct $25 billion toward two main goals:

• Health and disease cures — advancing medical breakthroughs using AI.
• Technical solutions to AI resilience — improving system safety and robustness.

This initiative revives OpenAI’s original 2015 nonprofit vision to ensure that artificial general intelligence (AGI) benefits humanity as a whole.

A Controversial Journey from Nonprofit to For-Profit

Founded in 2015 as a nonprofit, OpenAI shifted in 2019 to a “capped-profit” model before fully embracing a for-profit structure in 2024. The change has not been without controversy—most notably, Elon Musk, a co-founder, sued OpenAI earlier this year, alleging that the company had “abandoned its non-profit mission of developing AGI for the benefit of humanity.” (An OpenAI Timeline: Musk, Altman, and the For-Profit Shift).

Despite the criticism, CEO Sam Altman has maintained that the restructuring enables OpenAI to sustain its research at a global scale while maintaining public accountability through the foundation.