Anthropic's $1.5 Trillion IPO Meets Investor Doubt as AI Selloff Deepens

What happened

Major investors are increasingly skeptical that Anthropic's blockbuster initial public offering can proceed at its expected $1.5 trillion valuation, after a deep market selloff tied to the unwinding of AI-related bets, The Wall Street Journal and Reuters reported on Nov 5, 2026. Anthropic, the maker of the Claude assistant, is targeting a listing in the week of Nov 16, 2026, and had aimed to raise up to $100 billion, which would make it the largest IPO in history, ahead of SpaceX's June 2026 offering that raised roughly $86 billion according to Capital.fr, though Newser cites that June IPO at $75 billion. Three large investors involved in the deal told the WSJ the valuation will likely have to come down, with one saying a more realistic figure would be closer to $1 trillion. That would mark a second cut in expectations: in October, investors had already trimmed their assumptions from about $2 trillion to about $1.5 trillion after a slowdown in Anthropic's revenue growth. Investors are now awaiting Anthropic's October revenue figure, which the company left blank in its updated S-1 filing, to judge whether growth has recovered, Reuters reported via ground.news's summary. Sources told Reuters that investors are raising doubts about whether Anthropic can proceed with its planned roadshow next week; some backers say the deal might need to be delayed, and the WSJ reports the company could also shrink the size of the offering.

The selloff that has put the deal in question was triggered in part by Democratic victories in the US midterms, which raised fears of new limits on data center growth. On Thursday, the Nasdaq plunged more than 5.5 percent, its biggest drop since April 2025, and roughly $2.5 trillion was wiped off the value of tech companies in the Nasdaq composite, according to Newser and Capital.fr. A delay to Anthropic's IPO could deepen fears about the health of the AI industry and hit valuations of other tech giants, given Anthropic's close ties to Google, Amazon and Nvidia, Reuters reported via Newser. Rival OpenAI has already pushed its own IPO to 2027.

Why it matters

Anthropic's listing was positioned as the largest IPO ever attempted, and its pricing has become a referendum on how the market values the AI sector after two years of extraordinary gains. The gap between the $1.5 trillion target and the roughly $1 trillion figure one investor described as more realistic is a $500 billion question, and it comes on top of an earlier cut from about $2 trillion in October. The blank October revenue line in the updated S-1 filing has become the number the deal now hangs on: investors want proof that the growth slowdown that forced the first cut has reversed before they underwrite the larger valuation.

The timing compounds the pressure. The Nasdaq's more than 5.5 percent drop on Thursday, its worst session since April 2025, erased about $2.5 trillion in tech value in a single day, and the midterm results that helped trigger it point to a policy environment that could constrain the data center buildout underpinning AI economics. Because Anthropic sits at the center of a web of commercial relationships with Google, Amazon and Nvidia, a postponed or downsized offering would not stay contained. Reuters, via Newser, notes that a delay could deepen fears about the health of the AI industry and weigh on the valuations of other tech giants. OpenAI's decision to push its own IPO to 2027 already signals that the largest private AI companies are recalibrating their market debuts in this environment.

How it is being covered

The story is carried by 44 outlets tracked by ground.news, with a right-leaning tilt in the audience split: 13 percent left, 31 percent center and 56 percent right. Factuality ratings are mixed, with 10 of 23 rated outlets scoring high, plus 4 very high, 7 mixed and 1 low, while 22 outlets remain unrated. Ground.news flags no blindspot on the story, meaning no major ideological bloc is sitting it out.

What to watch

The October revenue figure is the immediate catalyst: if Anthropic discloses a recovery in growth, the $1.5 trillion pricing case strengthens, and if the number stays blank or disappoints, a cut toward $1 trillion or a delay becomes more likely. Watch whether the roadshow proceeds as planned next week, since Reuters reports investors are already questioning that timeline, and whether the company shrinks the size of the offering as the WSJ suggests it could. The final decision on timing and size will land against a market still digesting Thursday's selloff, so further Nasdaq moves before the listing week will shape the deal's reception. Retail demand is the other variable: as with SpaceX's record June IPO, Anthropic's stock is still expected to attract strong retail interest, which could support the deal even if institutional pricing comes down. Not all investors are retreating from the sector. "It's not like these companies are not going to be a part of the future... They're going to become public. Investors are still going to have a lot of interest in them," said Rick Meckler of Cherry Lane Investments, according to Newser.

By the numbers

Source snapshot