OpenAI and Anthropic Move Toward IPOs

Overview

• Both OpenAI and Anthropic have filed confidential IPO paperwork and are preparing rival public offerings after large private fundraising rounds and rapid revenue growth.
• OpenAI reported very strong near‑term sales but heavy losses, with leaked accounts showing a roughly $38.5 billion net loss in 2025 and $5.7 billion in revenue in Q1 2026 against $3.7 billion of operating expenses.
• Anthropic raised about $65 billion at an almost $1 trillion valuation and reported annualized revenue above $30 billion, driven in part by fast growth in its Claude Code product.
• Major corporate customers have tightened or limited employee AI use after bills surged under new metered pricing, with one vendor, Workato, reporting a single‑day 700% jump in its Anthropic bill after a shift to pay‑per‑token charging.
• Independent benchmarks show lower per‑task costs from some Chinese models and OpenAI is reportedly considering token price cuts, a dynamic that could pressure pricing, customer retention, and the two companies' IPO valuations.