On November 10, AI company Anthropic updated its prospectus, officially setting the price range for its Nasdaq IPO at $70–78 per share under the ticker symbol "ANT," marking another step toward going public.

Anthropic reportedly plans to issue 825 million shares. At the top of the range, the company could raise up to $64.35 billion through the offering; on a fully diluted basis, its overall valuation could reach as high as $1.405 trillion—well above the $965 billion valuation it commanded in its May financing round this year, though significantly below the $2 trillion figure previously rumored.

In addition, Anthropic plans to raise $26 billion through a separate private placement, with participating tech companies including Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, AMD, Broadcom, Micron Technology, and TSMC.

Yet as an AI giant, Anthropic's current performance pressures cannot be underestimated. Financial data shows that for the nine months ended September 30, Anthropic's revenue reached $33.2 billion, a year-on-year surge of about 1,200%; however, it posted a net loss of $104 billion over the same period.

The company explained that the huge loss stemmed mainly from changes in the fair value of convertible notes and derivative liabilities. Of that, about $94.3 billion came from fair value changes in financial instruments such as convertible notes—non-cash accounting losses. Over the same period, the company's operating loss was about $1.26 billion, slipping back into the red in the third quarter after achieving operating profitability in the second.

Amid these performance pressures and downward revisions to valuation expectations, Wall Street is re-examining the AI investment boom.

Given the enormous scale of capital expenditure, Goldman Sachs analysts expect Anthropic will not achieve positive full-year free cash flow until 2030, when free cash flow is projected to reach $33.6 billion.

More troubling still, the latest U.S. October CPI data released last night rose 0.4% month-on-month, exceeding expectations. The market now views a 25 basis point rate hike by the Federal Reserve in December as a foregone conclusion, and has even increased bets on a one-time 50 basis point hike.

Against the backdrop of persistently overheated inflation, high interest rates, and tightening Federal Reserve policy, investors are increasingly worried that the massive capital expenditures needed for AI infrastructure buildout—and rising financing costs—may prove difficult to fully recoup through future revenue. The market also has doubts about circular financing arrangements in the AI industry, overcapacity in data centers, and the speed at which companies can convert AI investment into actual revenue.

- End -