Anthropic files for IPO, becoming the world's most valuable startup

Anthropic has formally filed for an IPO with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, reaching a key milestone on its way to becoming a public company. After months of speculation about who would list first, OpenAI or Anthropic, the AI market leader has taken the first critical step.

A record valuation for a startup

Following last week's funding round, Anthropic is valued at $965 billion, making it the most valuable startup in the history of technology and innovation. The valuation exceeds that of its main rival OpenAI, which is valued at $852 billion.

The $113 billion gap shows how competitive and investment-heavy the AI market is, with two firms accounting for much of the sector's total value. Valuations this large reflect a radical reassessment by investors of how big the AI market can become.

Over the past year, AI has gone from a niche research field to a sector that can redefine every aspect of the economy and society. Investors, venture funds and strategic shareholders are ready to pay enormous sums for companies that control critical technologies capable of reshaping the industry's future.

The confidential filing strategy

Anthropic chose an unusual but increasingly popular route: it submitted a confidential draft S-1 instead of the standard, immediately public registration statement. This approach lets the company start the IPO process while keeping some privacy and control over the narrative during the critical early stages.

A confidential filing has several strategic advantages that large technology companies often use:

• Eases the initial SEC review without maximum publicity and media pressure
• Reduces public attention and market speculation in the earliest and most vulnerable stages of the process
• Lets the company adjust its financial materials and business description before full public disclosure
• Shortens overall IPO preparation time and reduces pressure from analysts and the press
• Gives the company more flexibility and control in dealing with regulators, investment banks and potential investors

The approach is becoming more common among large tech startups that want to control the public narrative and investors' perception of their IPO as much as possible.

The race of the two AI leaders to list

In recent months the tech industry has watched closely to see which of the two AI leaders would go public first. This news shows that Anthropic is several critical steps ahead of OpenAI in the complex IPO process.

Both companies are clearly and thoroughly ready for massive IPOs that will reshape the entire landscape of public investment in artificial intelligence. For financial and technology markets, this is a landmark, pivotal moment for the industry.

The two companies that largely set the pace and direction of AI development worldwide are preparing to enter public capital markets. In effect, AI investment is moving, in front of the whole world, from closed venture financing controlled by a few specialized funds to public capital accessible to millions of retail and institutional investors.

What this means for the AI industry

Anthropic's listing (and, undoubtedly, OpenAI's soon after) signals that the whole AI industry is entering a new phase of maturity, institutionalization and mass scaling. It shows that investors and public markets are ready to treat AI not as a speculative, temporary tech trend but as a full-fledged, long-term and scalable industrial sector, comparable to energy or telecommunications.

In the coming months and years, expect a wave of AI company IPOs, consolidation, mega-mergers and a redistribution of market power. This could fundamentally change how artificial intelligence is financed, managed, regulated and developed around the world.