Anthropic Reportedly Weighs IPO as AI Backlash Grows After Midterms

Anthropic is reportedly preparing for a potential IPO that could rank among the largest tech listings, with CNBC reporting investors see the company targeting a valuation of $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion - down from a $2 trillion figure floated in recent months. A Nasdaq debut could come as soon as mid-November. Anthropic declined to comment.

The timing lands in a difficult climate. The Nasdaq posted its steepest drop in 19 months on Thursday and slid to start November after October marked its worst month since March 2025, with chipmakers and neoclouds - the companies most exposed to the AI buildout - hit hardest.

Voters delivered a stinging rebuke to AI in Tuesday's midterms, sending Democrats to sweeping congressional victories. Candidates backing stricter AI regulation won handily in Michigan, Ohio, Texas and Georgia, and local communities rejected data center-related ballot measures in 40 of 41 cases. An NBC News exit poll found more than half of voters called AI data centers a crucial or major factor in their congressional vote.

Anthropic has long positioned itself as safety-conscious, founded by CEO Dario Amodei and researchers who left OpenAI. Its enterprise focus has kept it out of the public eye in ways rival OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman have not avoided. Going public will change that. "Being a public company, just that by itself pushes you in the limelight," Georgetown finance professor Reena Aggarwal said.

In its risk factors, Anthropic said opposition to data center development has grown more organized and that its public profile could draw scrutiny to projects tied to it. Amodei acknowledged souring sentiment in an August post on X, calling it a "crisis of trust." A USC survey published Monday found 71% of respondents don't trust big tech to act in society's best interest on data center development. "Once you've lost trust, it's hard to gain it back," said USC professor Wändi Bruine de Bruin. "The numbers are not good."

Source: CNBC