Technology

Investors Cut Anthropic's IPO Valuation to US$1.5 Trillion

Stateline MEDIA Newsroom•October 16, 2026•3 min read

Anthropic's investors are weighing an IPO valuation of around US$1.5 trillion, down from initial expectations of US$2 trillion, after third-quarter revenue growth slowed to 45 percent. The IPO is seen as a major test of the market's appetite for AI companies.

Key Facts

Some Anthropic investors are considering an IPO valuation of around $1.5 trillion, a significant drop from initial expectations of about $2 trillion, according to an exclusive Reuters report citing four sources.
Valuation discussions surfaced at Anthropic's investor day in San Francisco on Wednesday (14/10/2026), where the company reported third-quarter revenue of US$16.8 billion — up 45 percent from the second quarter.
Quarterly growth slowed: revenue surged 147 percent in the second quarter (from US$4.7 billion in the first quarter to US$11.6 billion in the second quarter), then grew only 45 percent in the third quarter.
Anthropic reported an adjusted operating profit in the third quarter, a turnaround from an operating loss of $8 billion in 2025.
Investors see the short-term prospects of the AI market as hinging heavily on the success of Anthropic's IPO, followed by a potential OpenAI listing next year.
The reassessment comes amid widespread concerns over ballooning AI infrastructure financing costs and reliance on debt; the semiconductor ETF (SOXX) fell for eight consecutive sessions.

Anthropic's IPO Valuation Cut

A number of Anthropic investors — both existing investors and prospective investors in the initial public offering (IPO) — are considering a lower valuation for the artificial intelligence company following its latest financial disclosure. According to an exclusive Reuters report citing four sources, investors who attended Anthropic's investor day in San Francisco on Wednesday (October 14, 2026) discussed a valuation of around US$1.5 trillion. That figure marks a significant drop from the roughly US$2 trillion valuation previously expected for the initial share sale in November.

At the meeting, Anthropic told prospective IPO investors that third-quarter revenue surged 45 percent to $16.8 billion from the previous quarter, and that the company recorded an adjusted profit for the quarter. The figures eased some concerns about the high cost of developing AI systems.

Growth Slows, Investors Disappointed

Even so, some investors were disappointed by the slowing pace of quarterly growth. Anthropic's revenue more than doubled from the first quarter to the second — from US$4.7 billion to US$11.6 billion, or 147 percent growth — but grew only 45 percent in the third quarter. That slowdown is what has drawn investors' attention, according to Reuters sources.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment. One investor, Gavin Baker, remained optimistic, citing positive free cash flow and accelerating growth in October. But the reassessment comes amid broader concerns about the ballooning cost of building AI infrastructure and the growing reliance on debt to finance expansion.

A Test for the AI Market

Anthropic's IPO is seen as a major test of investor appetite for AI companies. A cold reception to the offering could weigh on the AI market as a whole, whose short-term prospects are seen as heavily dependent on the success of the share sale — followed by a potential OpenAI listing next year.

Pressure is already visible in the market: concerns over AI financing, coupled with hotter-than-expected inflation data, triggered a sharp sell-off in AI-related stocks over the past week. The iShares semiconductor ETF (SOXX) fell for eight consecutive sessions as of Thursday. For the global technology industry, Anthropic's IPO in November will determine the direction of AI sentiment heading into 2027.