Cathie Wood has more riding on OpenAI than any fund manager in America
Cathie Wood is the biggest OpenAI bettor among major public funds, at least by share of her portfolio. Fidelity, however, holds the largest position by dollar value, according to an analysis from Bloomberg Intelligence.
OpenAI is the company behind ChatGPT, which has grown into one of the world’s most widely used consumer AI products. ChatGPT now has about 1.2 billion weekly active users, with its app becoming the fastest mobile app ever to reach 1 billion monthly active users in May 2026.
Bloomberg ETF analysts James Seyffart and Francis Sharoon found that ARK’s Venture Fund had about 8.6% of its portfolio tied to OpenAI, worth roughly $69 million. ARK’s Innovation ETF and Blockchain & Fintech Innovation ETF each carried about 2.6% exposure.
While Fidelity’s exposure is much larger in absolute dollars, it is spread across at least 19 funds. Fidelity Contrafund alone held an estimated $408 million position, representing just 0.2% of the fund.
For investors, that means ARK holders have much more riding on OpenAI’s performance because the company makes up a meaningful share of the fund.
“ARK looks to have the highest weights for their funds but Fidelity has the largest $$ exposure by far,” Seyffart said on Oct. 6.
The distinction matters because OpenAI remains privately held. Investors cannot simply buy OpenAI stock, making funds with private-market stakes one of the few ways public-market investors can gain indirect economic exposure.
If OpenAI’s valuation rises sharply, ARK investors could see a more noticeable boost to the fund’s NAV. Fidelity holders would benefit too, but because its OpenAI exposure is spread across many much larger funds, the effect on any one investor’s portfolio would likely be far smaller.
Why investors can’t buy OpenAI directly
The funds are not holding publicly traded OpenAI shares. Instead, they own private-market stakes or investment vehicles linked to the company, with those positions periodically assigned estimated values.
Those stakes have become increasingly valuable as OpenAI’s valuation has surged.
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ARK itself remains bullish on the company’s distribution advantage. In an Oct. 5 research note, the firm put the spotlight on ChatGPT’s 1.2 billion weekly active users. OpenAI could turn that reach into a major advantage as AI agents become more capable.
“If users begin to delegate valuable tasks more often, ChatGPT could become a significant distribution channel for agent software,” ARK said.
OpenAI was valued at $852 billion after a March funding round that secured $122 billion in commitments.
The company is now reportedly discussing another round of at least $30 billion at a roughly $1.4 trillion valuation. But the talks remain early, and CEO Sam Altman has said OpenAI will not go public in 2026.
Until an IPO eventually happens, funds such as ARK’s and Fidelity’s remain among the few ways public-market investors can gain indirect exposure to OpenAI.
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This story was originally published by TheStreet on Oct 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the Artificial Intelligence section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.