Anthropic IPO: What investors should know as leaked filing reveals huge AI costs and risks
Anthropic, the AI company behind Claude, is preparing for a possible initial public offering. New details about the IPO have emerged from a prospectus obtained by Reuters. The company is likely to launch its IPO after the US midterm elections in November.
Anthropic IPO faces huge AI costs and risks as Claude maker prepares to go public. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo) (REUTERS)Anthropic could seek a valuation of more than $2 trillion when it goes public. This would make the Claude maker one of the biggest AI companies to enter the public stock market.
One of the biggest things investors need to watch is Anthropic's financial position. Reuters reported that the company recorded a net loss of nearly $42 billion in 2025. At the same time, Anthropic expects to spend heavily on its AI infrastructure and computing capacity.
The prospectus projects $518 billion in costs over the next few years. This means investors will need to look closely at whether Anthropic can eventually turn its rapid AI growth and spending into sustainable profits.
Investors should not treat the leaked prospectus as the final set of IPO information. The next major document to watch is Anthropic's S-1 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The SEC filing is expected to provide much more detailed information about the company's finances and the proposed stock offering. The SEC will release additional financial details in the S-1 at least 15 days before the company's roadshow, when it pitches the IPO to institutional investors. Depending on when Anthropic launches the IPO, the filing could still be weeks or months away.
Once Anthropic's S-1 becomes public, investors should be able to examine its revenue, losses, growth and major business risks. The filing should also provide more details about how Anthropic plans to use the money raised through the IPO. This information will be important because the reported valuation is extremely large compared with the company's reported losses and future spending plans.
Anthropic launched Claude in 2023, a few months after OpenAI launched ChatGPT. Since then, Claude has become a major alternative to ChatGPT. OpenAI is expected to wait until early 2027 before going public and is seeking a $1.5 trillion valuation in a funding round ahead of its IPO, according to the New York Times, as reported by Yahoo Finance. This means Anthropic could reach the public market before its biggest rival.
ChatGPT remained the leading AI platform by website visits in March 2026. It had about 50% of visits among leading AI platforms at that time. However, its share had fallen from 66% in July 2025, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. Google Gemini had a 22% share in March 2026. Claude had about 10% of the market, according to Sensor Tower.
The prospectus reportedly warns that Anthropic's AI models could create a “catastrophic or existential risk to humanity.” It also says the models could potentially resist shutdown. These warnings are important for investors because AI safety risks could affect regulation, product development and the way Anthropic operates in the future.
For investors, this means future AI regulation could become an important factor affecting Anthropic's business and product development.
Another important risk is that Anthropic does not have long-term contracts with all of its customers. This can make its income more unpredictable because customers may change how much they spend on its AI services.
The prospectus also reportedly showed that nearly 25% of Anthropic's 2025 revenue came from just two customers. A large share of revenue coming from a small number of customers can become a risk if one of those customers reduces spending or leaves.
Anthropic's possible $2 trillion-plus valuation is a key number to watch. Investors should also examine the reported nearly $42 billion 2025 net loss and the projected $518 billion in future costs. The final S-1 should provide more information to help investors understand how the company plans to manage its spending and grow its business.
Investors also need to consider Anthropic's reliance on a small number of major customers and the possibility of tighter AI regulation. The final IPO documents should give investors more information before Anthropic's shares begin public trading.
Durva More is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times, where she covers finance, and global news. She brings experience across digital and television journalism, with a strong focus on breaking news, business reporting, and international affairs. Before joining Hindustan Times, Durva worked as an International News Writer at The Economic Times, covering a diverse range of subjects including global politics, business, sports, entertainment, and major world events. She also worked as a Business Reporter with NDTV Profit. A postgraduate diploma holder in Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Durva is passionate about field reporting and storytelling. She thrives on the adrenaline of chasing stories, speaking with people from different walks of life, and amplifying voices that deserve to be heard. Her reporting is driven by curiosity, accuracy, and a commitment to making complex subjects accessible to readers. When she is not chasing stories or covering breaking news, Durva enjoys reading books and painting. She loves exploring new ideas, meeting people, and learning about different perspectives. For her, both journalism and art are ways to understand the world and tell stories that matter.Read More
