AI start-up Anthropic plans historic stock market debut #
Anthropic is targeting a US stock market debut as soon as this autumn that could raise more than $100 billion and value the artificial intelligence start-up at up to $2 trillion, according to multiple people with direct knowledge of the IPO preparations. The figure would potentially eclipse SpaceX's record initial public offering.
The Claude developer has spent the past two years shifting from a niche, safety-focused AI lab into one of the most closely watched companies in global tech. The five-year-old firm, founded in 2021 by former OpenAI executives Dario and Daniela Amodei, has become a central player in the AI race alongside OpenAI, Google and Meta.
The latest briefings to potential investors suggest Anthropic 'expects to match or beat the size' of Elon Musk's SpaceX IPO, which went public in June at a valuation of $1.77 trillion, raising $85.7 billion at the outset and $86.2 billion once the overallotment option was exercised, according to data cited by Bloomberg.
IPO Would Roughly Double Anthropic's Last Valuation #
Anthropic's bankers have floated a fund-raise of 'more than $100 billion', two people involved in the IPO discussions told US media, implying a valuation that could hit $2 trillion. That would be more than double Anthropic's last private valuation of $965 billion reached in a June funding round that brought in $65 billion.
That round briefly pushed Anthropic ahead of OpenAI's $852 billion valuation from March. Anthropic is understood to have filed confidentially for an IPO, according to people with direct knowledge of the process, and could publish its prospectus within weeks, with shares potentially listing as early as autumn.
The public-benefit corporation is working with Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, with more banks expected to join the syndicate. Internal documents indicate the company recorded a net loss of almost $42 billion in 2025, up from about $8.3 billion the previous year, as it expanded its computing infrastructure.
Revenue growth has been steep in parallel: preliminary second-quarter revenue this year came in above $11.5 billion, compared with $787 million in the same period in 2025. By the end of July its annualised revenue run rate had reportedly reached $65 billion, driven by demand for its Claude models and its coding assistant, Claude Code.
Governance Shake-up and Funding Deals Before Float #
According to people familiar with Anthropic's agreements, the company has struck a data centre deal with SpaceX for computing resources that could be worth tens of billions of dollars over the next three years. It is also finalising a revolving credit facility expected to exceed a roughly $10 billion target.
Anthropic is also considering issuing super-voting shares that would give chief executive Dario Amodei, who owns around 2 per cent of the company, and other co-founders greater control after the float, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
An Anthropic IPO would land ahead of OpenAI, which is targeting a listing in 2027. The company has consistently framed itself as a safety-focused alternative in a sector known for rapid product launches, though that positioning has not shielded it from political friction.
In March, the US government cut its contracts with Anthropic and designated the company a supply chain risk after it declined to grant the military unfettered access to its AI models, according to government actions cited in earlier reports by Bloomberg. Anthropic argued at the time that the Defence Department's decision amounted to unconstitutional retaliation.
Booming IPO Market Faces $2 Trillion Test #
The broader listings market is unusually strong, with newly listed companies raising $160.6 billion this year through 19 August, putting 2026 within reach of 2021's record $195.2 billion, according to Bloomberg data.
A large Anthropic listing that surpassed SpaceX would push the annual total to a new high. Whether public investors are prepared to back a $2 trillion valuation for a company losing tens of billions of dollars a year remains an open question.
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