Tech’s worst-kept secret is finally out: Anthropic has filed its S-1 with the SEC, paving the way for an IPO and a reported investor roadshow beginning as soon as November 9 in an attempt to drum up interest befitting its targeted $1.5 trillion valuation.

In doing so, the company has opened its books, giving would-be investors their first look at its finances. And the numbers are eye-popping. The company booked an $80.7 billion net loss on $16.3 billion in revenue, but operating losses are falling.

Around 250 customers pay the firm more than $10 million a year in contracts, while more than 10,000 pay at least $100,000. Its net revenue retention stands at around 900%. And every employee contributes $6.6 million to the company’s revenue, the kinds of numbers that any company would envy.

The IPO will be a major test of the market’s appetite to invest in the promise and potential of AI, ushering in the “put up or shut up” era for the technology.

“Anthropic’s IPO is shaping up to be a major test of investor appetite for AI,” says Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, a non-advisory investment service, “especially as it’s arriving at a particularly turbulent time for markets.”

For years, investors have bought into the potential of AI to transform the economy, benefiting from ever-increasing valuations of companies across the AI ecosystem. Private investment in AI firms has increased 48-fold since 2013 , with last year’s $290 billion in investment up from $131 billion in 2024.

Source link