Microsoft’s AI Revenue Mostly Comes From OpenAI
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New disclosures from Microsoft show that a large share of the software giant’s AI revenue comes from its closest partner, OpenAI. According to a company filing published last week, Microsoft recorded $24.1 billion in sales from OpenAI during the fiscal year ending in June.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had said at the end of the March quarter that the company was on pace to record $37 billion in AI revenue over the course of a full year. However, Microsoft did not update that total AI sales figure when it reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings last week.
Based on the available figures, Bloomberg estimates that OpenAI accounted for more than half — likely around 70% — of Microsoft’s actual AI sales in the past fiscal year. The calculation assumes that the 123% annualized growth rate Microsoft reported for March continued at the same pace. That would put Microsoft’s total AI business at roughly $34 billion for the fiscal year ending in June, compared with the $24.1 billion in revenue that came from OpenAI.
Background on the Partnership
Under their existing agreement, OpenAI pays Microsoft for computing power, costs tied to training AI models, and a share of its revenue. Microsoft has previously sought to reduce its reliance on OpenAI — for instance by backing Anthropic and developing its own models. Even so, investors continue to scrutinize how much of Microsoft’s AI revenue is actually generated by OpenAI.
Microsoft holds a stake of around 27% in OpenAI and has been the startup’s largest investor since early on. However, the two companies’ shared ambition of breaking Google’s dominance on the web has not materialized as planned. OpenAI has since moved away from its exclusive partnership with Microsoft, striking deals with other providers, including Amazon. Microsoft, meanwhile, has invested in Anthropic and now uses a broader mix of models beyond GPT, including some developed in-house.
Less Than 10% of Microsoft’s Total Revenue
Microsoft has only disclosed its total AI business figure twice: once for the quarter ending in December 2024, when it said the unit was on pace to generate more than $13 billion in annual sales, and again for the March quarter, when it cited a pace of more than $37 billion. According to a company spokesperson, this total includes all revenue from AI customers as well as AI-specific product sales — including OpenAI’s revenue share.
Measured against Microsoft’s total revenue, OpenAI’s contribution looks much smaller — under 10%. The company added about $51 billion in new commercial bookings in its most recent quarter, driven largely by customers other than AI startups. Still, OpenAI accounted for most of the year-over-year growth in bookings.
