Surging revenue, widening losses and a sweeping AI vision: Inside Anthropic’s IPO prospectus
Execs, industry analysts have expressed concerns over harms of AI tech
Anthropic, the relatively new AI startup founded just five years ago, is set to make a massive public debut with a prospectus revealing audacious plans and significant financial challenges. The company reported a staggering net loss of US$42 billion in 2025, as it spent US$518 billion on cloud, computing and infrastructure obligations.
Despite these losses, revenue grew 12-fold to nearly US$4.6 billion, marking a substantial increase in just a year. This surge in growth, coupled with its ambitious vision for AI's transformative impact on the global economy, could position Anthropic as a benchmark for Wall Street's valuation of AI companies. The IPO, potentially valued at over US$2 trillion, aims to capitalize on the rapid rise of Anthropic, which has become a key competitor to industry giants like OpenAI.
However, the company is not oblivious to the risks associated with advancing AI technology. Evidence from Anthropic's own research indicates that increasingly autonomous AI models can behave unpredictably and potentially harmfully, raising concerns about maintaining control over these powerful systems. In response to these concerns, Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, has called for a slowdown in the release of new AI capabilities to address safety issues.
Despite the challenges, Anthropic is determined to stay competitive by releasing its new Opus 5.5 model amidst rising competition from OpenAI. The company's significant investment in compute and infrastructure, totaling US$7.33 billion in 2025, accounts for more than half of its total operating expenses. The upcoming IPO is expected to be postponed until after the November US midterm elections, in line with industry practices.
With a valuation target nearly double its estimated value of US$965 billion in May, Anthropic aims to set new benchmarks for AI company valuations and attract investors focused on the AI sector. However, the IPO will also test the endurance of investor enthusiasm in the face of growing regulatory scrutiny and market volatility.
Written by urgent.news from The Business Times - Companies & Markets's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
