Anthropic IPO Valuation Faces Investor Pushback
Major investors now doubt Anthropic can still hit a $1.5T IPO after the AI selloff. One says pricing may land closer to $1T. Will the deal slip or shrink?
Hakkı ALKANPublished 3 min read
Major institutional investors are increasingly skeptical about the Anthropic IPO valuation of about $1.5 trillion after a deep AI-related market selloff, according to people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal on Nov. 6, 2026.
Anthropic has been aiming to list the week before Thanksgiving and raise up to $100 billion in what could have been the largest IPO on record. Three major investors who plan to participate told the Journal the valuation will likely need to come down, with one saying it could be closer to $1 trillion.
Why Is The Anthropic IPO Valuation Under Pressure?
Even if markets rebound, another investor said it could be hard to convince institutions burned in the selloff to take a big AI risk again, and wondered whether Anthropic might delay. Another option is raising less capital than planned. The company had $146.6 billion in cash as of Sept. 30, the Journal reported via Mint.
Anthropic executives and advisers are expected to meet in the next few days to discuss IPO plans. They have avoided locking in specifics so they can keep optionality, according to the same people familiar with the matter.
What Did The AI Selloff Change?
Investors had viewed Anthropic as a "must-own" name for months. That mood shifted after Nasdaq-listed companies shed about $2.5 trillion of value on Thursday, two days after U.S. midterms empowered a bloc of AI skeptics and advanced data-center moratoriums, the Journal said. City AM separately reported that the Nasdaq plunged around 6% that day.
Even before Thursday's rout, enthusiasm for AI names was waning. Rival OpenAI has raised less than half of the $30 billion it initially targeted for its latest funding round, the Journal reported, receiving $11 billion so far at a $1.25 trillion valuation. See our earlier coverage of the OpenAI funding round.
How Strong Is Anthropic's Growth Story?
Fundamentals remain large by any standard. City AM said Anthropic was valued at $965 billion in May and reported more than $33 billion in revenue for the first nine months of 2026, including roughly $17 billion in the third quarter. Our earlier Anthropic revenue report covered the Q3 S-1/A details.
WSJ reporter Kate Clark also noted, in reporting highlighted on Techmeme, that Anthropic's annualized revenue run rate topped $80 billion at the end of October, according to a person familiar with the matter. Secondary summaries say Anthropic has not publicly confirmed that October run-rate figure.
Our Take
This story is less about Claude's demand and more about what public-market buyers will pay after a sharp AI correction. Cash of $146.6 billion buys time, but a $1.5 trillion debut is harder to sell when institutions are still digesting a $2.5 trillion Nasdaq hit and OpenAI's smaller private round. For how ticker ANT and retail brokers work, see our Anthropic IPO guide.
What Do The Key Numbers Show?
| Metric | Reported figure |
|---|---|
| Expected IPO valuation | Around $1.5 trillion |
| Investor talk (one source) | Closer to $1 trillion |
| Potential raise | Up to $100 billion |
| Cash (Sept. 30) | $146.6 billion |
| May private valuation | $965 billion |
| 9M 2026 revenue | More than $33 billion |
| Q3 revenue | About $17 billion |
| Oct. run rate (WSJ) | Above $80 billion (unconfirmed by company) |