Anthropic Files for IPO Ahead of OpenAI - $965B Valuation, 2026
An IPO (initial public offering) is the process of listing a company's shares on a public market so anyone can buy and sell them. On June 1, 2026, Anthropic, the maker of the Claude chatbot, confidentially filed for a US IPO - upending the assumption that OpenAI would go public first. For anyone who uses AI or invests in it, this is a milestone worth understanding.
Why Anthropic filed for an IPO before OpenAI
Anthropic said the filing "gives us the option to go public after the SEC completes its review," adding that the number and price of shares have not been set. The real story is the order. Markets long assumed ChatGPT-maker OpenAI would list first, but Anthropic moved ahead. Patrick Corrigan, a law professor at Notre Dame who studies IPOs, called it "a little surprising" and pointed to "a first mover's advantage." Anthropic is a five-year-old company founded in 2021 by former OpenAI leaders.
$965 billion - Anthropic by the numbers
Last week Anthropic raised $65 billion at a $965 billion valuation, passing OpenAI for the first time. Demand for Claude in coding and work automation has pushed its annualized revenue to $47 billion. By comparison, OpenAI was valued at $852 billion in March and has not filed yet.
So how does this affect me?
The biggest change is access. If the listing goes ahead, everyday investors - not just funds and insiders - could buy shares in a leading AI company directly. Public companies must also report earnings every quarter, so you would finally see the real numbers behind the AI hype. The caveat is just as real: Anthropic is still unprofitable, and like OpenAI and SpaceX it spends more than it earns, fueling "AI bubble" concerns.
What analysts expect next
Analysts read the IPO filing as the start of an "AI IPO rush." Wedbush's Dan Ives called it "an opening of the floodgates for the IPO market," expecting Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX to list later this year. Dotcom-era comparisons are flying, too. Corrigan noted that "whenever there is speculation, there's also usually substance" - the question is whether the price matches what AI delivers.
Key Takeaways
① Confidential IPO filing - Anthropic filed with the SEC on June 1, ahead of OpenAI.
② $965B valuation - It passed OpenAI for the first time at a record price.
③ Access and risk - Retail investors gain a path in, but bubble worries persist.
This filing shows the AI contest moving from technology to capital markets. Whether this fall's IPO race answers the "AI bubble" question is worth watching.
👉 Anthropic Passes OpenAI at $965B Valuation - World's Most Valuable AI Startup 2026 - also worth a read.
📌 Sources: Fortune, Bloomberg, AP (2026)
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