Anthropic pushes back IPO as investors await one of AI’s biggest public-market tests
The company is now expected to file its prospectus in late September and begin marketing the offering no earlier than mid-October, with investors discussing a potential valuation of up to $2 trillion.
Anthropic is pushing back plans for what could become one of the largest and most closely watched technology IPOs in years, with the artificial intelligence company now expected to begin marketing its offering no earlier than mid-October, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Reuters.
The company had been expected to make its IPO prospectus public as early as next week, a step that would have formally begun the final phase of the listing process. That timetable has now slipped, with the prospectus not expected until late September, according to two of the people cited by Reuters.
The delay is not necessarily a sign that Anthropic has abandoned its plans or that market conditions have deteriorated. Companies routinely adjust IPO schedules as they work through regulatory reviews, financing arrangements and preparations for meetings with potential investors. But the revised timetable pushes one of the most anticipated tests of public-market appetite for artificial intelligence further into the autumn.
If the offering proceeds as currently contemplated, Anthropic could begin marketing the IPO in mid-October and complete the listing just days before the U.S. midterm elections in November, according to Reuters. The timing remains subject to change.
The scale of the potential offering is what makes the timetable particularly significant. Investors have discussed a possible valuation of as much as $2 trillion, which would put Anthropic's debut among the largest IPOs ever attempted and make it an unusually consequential test of whether public markets are prepared to absorb another enormous bet on AI.
The company is also still working through an important piece of the financing structure surrounding the offering.
Anthropic is seeking to finalize a $15 billion revolving credit facility, according to one of the people cited by Reuters. Bloomberg News had previously reported that the company was in talks to expand the facility to that size.
Once the financing is finalized, analysts, including those at banks involved in the IPO, are expected to meet with Anthropic. Such meetings are normally held before a company makes its prospectus public, although Anthropic is expected to have a tighter-than-usual window between the analyst meetings and the filing because the banks already know the company well.
The banks working on the offering include Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Citi, according to people familiar with the process. The banks declined to comment, while Anthropic also declined to comment.
The eventual IPO will arrive at a moment when investors are being asked to distinguish between the enormous sums being committed to AI companies and the businesses capable of translating that spending into sustainable returns.
Anthropic's potential listing could therefore become more than another technology IPO. It could offer public-market investors one of their clearest opportunities to place a direct value on one of the companies at the center of the AI investment boom.
Anthropic may also find itself sharing the public-market spotlight with other major technology companies. Reuters reported that the IPO could come alongside potential listings from other AI companies, including OpenAI.
The market has already shown a willingness to assign extraordinary valuations to companies associated with the AI boom. SpaceX went public in June at a record $1.77 trillion valuation.
Reuters contributed to this report.
