OpenAI has firmly denied any involvement in Robinhood’s recent sale of so-called “OpenAI tokens,” cautioning consumers that the tokens do not represent equity or stock in the artificial intelligence company.
In a post from its official newsroom account on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday, OpenAI stated: “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.”
The response comes after Robinhood announced plans earlier this week to offer tokenized shares of private companies — including OpenAI and SpaceX — to retail investors in the European Union. The move was promoted as a way for ordinary people to gain exposure to the world’s most valuable private firms through blockchain-based assets.
However, OpenAI, a private company whose stock is not available to the general public, distanced itself from the initiative and emphasized that no actual shares were involved in the offering.
In response to OpenAI’s statement, Robinhood spokesperson Rouky Diallo told TechCrunch that the tokens were part of a “limited” giveaway, offering indirect exposure to OpenAI via Robinhood’s stake in a special purpose vehicle that holds OpenAI shares. SPVs are legal entities that can own company shares, but token holders do not receive direct ownership in the underlying firm — only in the SPV.
In Robinhood’s help center, the company clarifies that its tokens are not real stocks, stating: “You are not buying the actual stocks — you are buying tokenized contracts that follow their price, recorded on a blockchain.”
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev defended the offering on Wednesday, writing on X: “While it is true that they aren’t technically ‘equity,’ […] the tokens effectively give retail investors exposure to these private assets. Our giveaway plants a seed for something much bigger.” He also claimed that other private companies have expressed interest in joining what he called the “tokenization revolution.”
Still, the controversy highlights broader concerns among private firms over control of their equity and valuation. In recent months, other startups, such as Figure AI, have issued cease-and-desist letters to brokers marketing their shares without authorization.
