FT: Investors eye $2trn Anthropic valuation in record IPO

Investors are anticipating a massive valuation of up to $2 trillion for AI startup Anthropic as it prepares for its historic October initial public offering (IPO), according to sources cited by the Financial Times (FT). This potential valuation more than doubles previous estimates of $1 trillion and would surpass SpaceX as the largest public listing in history.

Anthropic reported nearly $11 billion in revenue for the second quarter of the year, more than doubling its $4.8 billion in revenue from the first quarter. The company filed for a public listing in June but has not yet set a final valuation. Backers expect the AI giant, founded five years ago, to achieve annualized revenue between $100 billion and $120 billion this year.

Anthropic's flagship AI product, Claude, has garnered widespread attention as the company competes with OpenAI, which is also targeting an IPO. Venture capitalists, industry giants, and institutional investors have collectively invested nearly $100 billion in Anthropic this year, driving its growth. Deals with AMD and Amazon further bolster the company's resources, with AMD pledging $5 billion for chip access and Amazon committing up to $25 billion.

Despite facing a temporary export ban on two of its cybersecurity models by the US government over security concerns, Anthropic's revenue rebounded "extraordinarily" once the ban was lifted. The company also faces ongoing legal challenges with the US government over the ban.