Anthropic retracted the pricing details of its planned initial public offering shortly after circulating them to bankers, according to emails reviewed by reporters. The original filing showed the company selling about 867 million shares at $70 to $80 apiece, a raise of up to $69.3 billion at the top of the range.
A follow-up email told bankers the pricing details were inaccurate and that an updated filing would follow. It did not say what was wrong. Anthropic declined to comment on the retraction.
The retracted filing broke the offering into 866.7 million Class A shares, including a secondary portion. About 843.3 million shares were to be sold by Anthropic itself and about 23.3 million by existing shareholders.
Key facts
- 01Anthropic's retracted filing showed about 867 million shares at $70 to $80 each, a raise of up to $69.3 billion.
- 02A second email told bankers the pricing details were inaccurate and that an updated filing would follow.
- 03Google, Nvidia, AMD, Broadcom, Micron, Microsoft and TSMC lined up about $26 billion in private placements at the IPO price.
- 04Potential investors have discussed valuations of roughly $1.1 trillion to $1.3 trillion, down from up to $2 trillion explored earlier.
- 05Anthropic reported almost $17 billion in revenue for the three months ended September 30.
It also showed roughly $26 billion in investments lined up alongside the IPO. Alphabet's Google, Nvidia, AMD, Broadcom, Micron Technology, Microsoft and TSMC agreed to buy Class N common stock in a private placement at the IPO price, closing immediately after the offering. Per-company amounts were not disclosed.
The first email went out late Monday, November 9. The roadshow had been expected to launch Tuesday, November 10, with pricing the following week. Investors were already questioning whether the roadshow could go ahead that week and whether the listing would close in November.
Valuation expectations have shifted. Anthropic had initially explored a valuation of up to $2 trillion. Some investors considered a previously discussed $1.5 trillion figure too high, and potential investors have since discussed roughly $1.1 trillion to $1.3 trillion.
The reassessment followed a sharp sell-off in AI stocks after the US midterm elections. Other AI infrastructure companies have delayed or withdrawn planned listings.
At the size shown in the retracted filing, Anthropic's offering would be the largest IPO on record, surpassing SpaceX's June debut.
Anthropic reported almost $17 billion in revenue for the three months ended September 30, according to an amended filing, though its quarterly growth has slowed sharply. The company also has nearly $900 billion in computing commitments with partners including Amazon and Google.
Anthropic was founded in 2021 by former OpenAI executives, including Dario Amodei and his sister Daniela Amodei, now the company's president. For now, the company has told bankers only that an updated filing with revised figures will follow.
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