The two AI giants are preparing to go public in a market where stagflation fears could complicate even the splashiest tech debuts.
The biggest names in artificial intelligence are lining up for what could become the most consequential IPO season in years. OpenAI and Anthropic, the two companies sitting at the center of the generative AI boom, are both preparing for public listings later this year, with OpenAI targeting readiness as early as September and Anthropic eyeing October or later.
The trillion-dollar question #
OpenAI is working with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley on a confidential S-1 filing. The company’s valuation currently sits somewhere between $850 billion and $1.1 trillion.
Anthropic, the Claude maker founded by former OpenAI researchers, recently closed a $30 billion funding round that pushed its valuation to approximately $900 billion. Its target listing date of October 2026 or later gives it a bit more runway than its rival.
Both companies are staffing up for the transition. OpenAI’s CFO Sarah Friar is steering the financial preparation, while Anthropic has engaged Wilson Sonsini, the Silicon Valley law firm that’s practically a rite of passage for tech companies going public.
Neither company is going first, though. SpaceX has advanced furthest in the IPO process, with its S-1 filing already public and a roadshow expected to kick off around early June.
Stagflation is the uninvited guest #
High inflation paired with slowing growth has made the equity market challenging for high-valuation tech debuts. When inflation is eating into returns and growth is slowing, the conversation shifts quickly from “what’s your total addressable market” to “when do you actually make money.”
That’s a tough question for both OpenAI and Anthropic to answer right now. The compute costs required to train and run frontier AI models are enormous. Revenue is growing, but so are expenses, and neither company has demonstrated a clear path to sustainable profitability.
What this means for investors #
OpenAI’s ongoing losses mean investors are essentially placing a bet on dominance in a market that barely existed three years ago. A company valued at $850 billion to $1.1 trillion needs to eventually generate profits that justify that figure.
Anthropic’s $900 billion valuation carries similar risks. Amazon’s substantial backing provides distribution advantages, but public market investors will want to see independent revenue traction.
The sequencing also deserves attention. SpaceX going first, followed by OpenAI, followed by Anthropic creates a cadence where all three are competing for institutional capital within a roughly four-month window.
For investors watching from the sidelines, revenue growth rates, gross margins on AI services, customer concentration risk, and capital expenditure forecasts in the S-1 filings will tell you more about the actual investment case than any valuation headline. Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our