Anthropic IPO targets $1.02 trillion valuation amid AI cost fears
Josh Schafer warns retail investors against buying the Anthropic IPO at its debut. Schafer highlights historical trends of large tech listings dropping 50% in their first year and notes intense competition from OpenAI.
Anthropic, the artificial intelligence company behind the Claude chatbot, is seeking a valuation of up to $1.02 trillion in a blockbuster initial public offering, falling short of earlier expectations as Wall Street grows increasingly cautious about the enormous costs fueling the AI boom.
The San Francisco-based company plans to raise as much as $64.4 billion through the sale of 825 million shares priced between $70 and $78 apiece, according to an amended Securities and Exchange Commission filing released Tuesday.
Anthropic will also raise $26 billion through a separate private placement involving major technology companies, including Google, Nvidia, Microsoft and AMD, bringing the combined fundraising target to as much as $90.4 billion.
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An Anthropic logo is displayed at Moscone Center during the Dreamforce 2026 technology summit in San Francisco, California, Sept. 17, 2026. (Reuters/Carlos Barria/File Photo)
The proposed valuation is significantly below the $1.5 trillion figure previously discussed by prospective investors. At one point this year, investors had anticipated a valuation as high as $2 trillion, Reuters reported.
The reduced target comes amid growing concerns about whether AI companies can generate sufficient returns to justify their massive spending on chips, data centers and computing infrastructure.
“What we are seeing is essentially a reassessment of Anthropic’s value in a more challenging AI environment,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank, told Reuters.
“The company continues to post impressive growth, but investors are increasingly focused on the cost of generating that growth,” she added.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei addresses the gathering at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, India, on Feb. 19, 2026. (Reuters/Bhawika Chhabra/File Photo / Reuters Photos)
Still, some analysts view the proposed valuation as a sign of continued confidence in the AI sector despite recent market volatility.
Fiona Cincotta, senior market analyst at City Index, described the offering as “fairly bullish,” saying it suggests Anthropic remains optimistic about future demand for artificial intelligence.
Anthropic’s IPO filing revealed explosive revenue growth, with sales reaching $33.2 billion during the first nine months of 2026, compared with $2.5 billion during the same period last year.
Third-quarter revenue climbed to approximately $17 billion, driven by growing adoption of its Claude AI models across industries including healthcare, financial services and legal services.
Despite that growth, Anthropic reported a $1.3…
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