OpenAI races to raise $30 billion before Anthropic's IPO

OpenAI is racing to lock in about $30 billion from investors before Anthropic's expected mid-November IPO, in a round that could value the ChatGPT maker at more than $1.4 trillion, Reuters reported on October 19, citing two people familiar with the matter. SoftBank, Abu Dhabi's MGX and other existing backers are in talks to take part, one of them said. OpenAI and SoftBank declined to comment.

The timing is the story. Both labs are drawing on the same pool of sovereign and long-only money, and once Anthropic's prospectus is public, every OpenAI number will be read against it. "OpenAI could want to set its own valuation and not have to worry about a comp (comparison)," Edward Best, co-chair of capital markets at Willkie Farr & Gallagher, told Reuters. Best is not involved in either deal.

From $852 billion to $1.4 trillion in seven months

That target would extend a steep run. OpenAI raised $110 billion at a $730 billion pre-money valuation in February, with Amazon putting in $50 billion and SoftBank and NVIDIA $30 billion each, and on March 31 said it had closed $122 billion at an $852 billion post-money valuation.

Bloomberg first reported in late September that OpenAI wanted at least $30 billion at about $1.4 trillion before the new money, and later that UAE funds including MGX had discussed up to $10 billion combined, with BlackRock also in talks. Nothing is signed: the round is "driven by investor demand and no term sheet has been finalized yet," CNBC reported.

The pitch leans on growth. OpenAI is telling investors its annualized revenue is about $50 billion and will reach $70 billion by year-end, according to Reuters' source. That $50 billion figure is itself a step down: earlier this month the Financial Times and Reuters reported the run-rate was roughly $20 billion below what OpenAI had previously signaled, and analysts consider annualized run-rate a sometimes misleading metric.

Why Anthropic's filing sets the clock

Anthropic raised $65 billion at a $965 billion post-money valuation in May and has filed a confidential draft S-1. Reuters reported its third-quarter revenue at $16.8 billion, up from $11.6 billion in the second quarter, and said some investors are pushing back on the $2 trillion valuation it is seeking, arguing for closer to $1.5 trillion.

The two companies also disagree about how to count. OpenAI reports revenue net of partner shares and argues Anthropic books gross sales through cloud channels; Anthropic says it follows established practice. A public S-1 would put that argument in front of every fund OpenAI is courting.

Markets add urgency. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index shed about $1.6 trillion in under two weeks, CoreWeave's debt is under scrutiny, and several infrastructure listings have been pulled or paused, Reuters noted. Elon Musk's xAI sidestepped the question in February by merging into SpaceX at a combined $1.25 trillion.

Skeptics are circling the whole category. New Constructs, the research firm led by David Trainer, called Anthropic's offering the "most ridiculous IPO of 2026", arguing that "since the arrival of open-source models, it's been clear that the closed models would struggle to generate profits." The same critique applies to the company now asking for a $1.4 trillion price.

OpenAI's own listing is not imminent. It filed confidentially in June, but Sam Altman told Fortune that "right now would be an ill-advised moment to go public," adding: "I would say not 2026." Reuters describes a planned 2027 listing. Watch whether OpenAI announces signed commitments before Anthropic sets its price range, because whichever number lands first becomes the other's benchmark.