Investors in AI startup Anthropic are betting that the maker of the Claude chatbot could debut on public markets at a valuation of $2 trillion or more later this year, a figure that would make it one of the largest initial public offerings in history.
According to a report by the Financial Times, backers of the five-year-old company expect Anthropic to pursue a stock market listing as early as October, potentially eclipsing the valuation achieved by SpaceX and setting a new benchmark for technology IPOs.
Anthropic’s investors estimate that the company’s annualised revenue could reach between $100 billion and $120 billion by the end of 2026, more than ten times higher than levels recorded earlier in the year. The company disclosed in May that annualised revenue had already exceeded $47 billion, reflecting rapid adoption of its AI products by businesses.
The company, led by chief executive Dario Amodei, has emerged as one of the strongest challengers to OpenAI and Google in the race to commercialise advanced AI systems. Anthropic has differentiated itself through its focus on enterprise customers and high-performance models, including Fable 5 and Mythos 5, which investors say have strengthened its market position.
The expected IPO valuation would represent a dramatic leap from Anthropic’s last funding round in May, when the company was valued at approximately $965 billion after attracting fresh capital from venture capital firms, sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors. Nearly $100 billion has reportedly flowed into the company during 2026 alone.
Investors are valuing Anthropic using revenue multiples similar to those assigned to fast-growing AI-linked companies. Some believe the company could justify valuations even higher than $2 trillion if its current pace of expansion continues. One investor cited by the Financial Times suggested that sustained growth rates of several hundred per cent annually could support a valuation approaching $3 trillion.
