Stripe expands AI push with OpenRouter acquisition

By Milan Rojan

Stripe has agreed to acquire US-based AI model marketplace OpenRouter as the payments company has expanded its push into artificial intelligence and AI-native commerce.

The transaction has brought OpenRouter’s platform for routing and optimising requests across AI models into Stripe’s broader technology offering. Financial terms have not been officially disclosed, although reports have valued the deal at more than $8bn.

Founded in 2023, OpenRouter has developed a unified interface that has allowed developers and businesses to access hundreds of AI models through a single platform. The company has said its network has supported more than 10 million developers and companies and processed over 10 trillion tokens a day across about 400 models.

Stripe has increasingly expanded beyond traditional payment processing as it has built infrastructure for businesses developing AI products. Its initiatives have included token billing capabilities that have enabled companies to monitor AI model usage and manage charges based on consumption.

The acquisition has also strengthened Stripe’s position in the emerging infrastructure market around AI agents and model usage, where businesses have faced growing requirements to compare models, control costs and manage workloads.

OpenRouter has attracted investment from firms including Andreessen Horowitz, Menlo Ventures and CapitalG. The company was valued at about $1.3 billion earlier this year.

Stripe processed $1.9 trillion in total payment volume in 2025, representing a 34% increase from the previous year, according to the company. The OpenRouter acquisition has marked one of Stripe’s largest moves into AI infrastructure as demand for AI-powered applications has continued to grow.

The combined platform has potentially positioned Stripe to connect payments, usage-based billing and AI infrastructure within a single business technology stack for developers and enterprises.