Anthropic, the artificial intelligence company behind the Claude chatbot, is targeting a valuation of up to $1.3 trillion in its planned stock market debut on the Nasdaq exchange in New York.
The company plans to offer its shares at between $70 and $78 each, seeking to raise as much as $64 billion in what could become one of the biggest initial public offerings (IPOs) in history.
The proposed valuation, estimated at between $1.1 trillion and $1.3 trillion, is, however, below the $2 trillion valuation some of the company’s backers reportedly anticipated during the summer, according to the Financial Times.
The IPO comes at a challenging time for the artificial intelligence industry, as investors reassess the huge sums being committed to AI development and question whether the anticipated returns will justify the spending.
Technology stocks have also come under pressure following last week’s US midterm elections, with the Nasdaq recording a sharp decline amid concerns that a Democrat-led Congress could introduce obstacles to AI development and the expansion of data centres.
Despite these uncertainties, Anthropic’s financial performance highlights the rapid growth of demand for its AI products.
In its latest financial results covering the six months to June, the company’s revenue surged to $16.2 billion, compared with $1.1 billion recorded during the corresponding period last year.
However, its pre-tax losses also widened significantly, rising to $80.7 billion from $12.9 billion over the same period.
Fiona Cincotta, senior market analyst at City Index, described Anthropic’s proposed $64 billion fundraising target as “fairly bullish” given the market volatility and growing concerns surrounding the AI sector.
Speaking to Reuters, she said the fundraising ambition suggests that the company remains confident about the industry’s outlook and expects demand for artificial intelligence services to remain strong.
At its proposed $1.3 trillion valuation, Anthropic would still be valued below Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which includes rocket, satellite and artificial intelligence businesses. SpaceX was valued at nearly $1.8 trillion following its stock market listing in June.
Founded in 2021, Anthropic is one of the leading players in the global AI race. The company was established by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei alongside five other former OpenAI employees.
Its Claude chatbot competes with OpenAI’s ChatGPT in an increasingly competitive market where technology companies are investing billions of dollars in developing more advanced AI models and expanding computing infrastructure.
The planned listing will therefore test investor appetite for major AI companies at a time when enthusiasm for the technology is being weighed against concerns about profitability, mounting losses and the enormous cost of sustaining the AI boom.
