On June 1, 2026, Anthropic, the corporation founded by former OpenAI executives, took a step that could reshape the landscape of artificial intelligence. The company confidentially filed a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This is a legal signal of readiness for an Initial Public Offering (IPO).
However, behind the dry formulations regarding "dependence on market conditions" lies a much larger story. Anthropic, whose capitalization has already reached nearly one trillion dollars, is not just preparing for a stock exchange listing — it is declaring readiness for an era where AI can self-improve without human intervention.
The Trillion-Dollar Race and the "Confidential" IPO
The company's press release is intentionally devoid of specifics: neither the number of shares nor the starting price is named. This is a strategic move. In conditions where the valuation of the AI sector often exceeds reality, Anthropic reserves the right to form the final price range immediately before going public, avoiding accusations of creating artificial hype (gun-jumping).
Nevertheless, the numbers speak for themselves. A week before filing the S-1 application, the company closed an investment round, raising $65 billion. This allowed Anthropic to overtake OpenAI and secure its status as the market leader. Experts and investors are already speculating on the final valuation: from two to three trillion dollars. For comparison: two trillion is the annual GDP of countries like Italy, Canada, or Brazil.
The Paradox: IPO and Refusal to Release
The most intriguing aspect of the current situation is the company's behavior regarding products. Against the backdrop of IPO preparations, which are usually accompanied by the demonstration of new achievements, Anthropic refused to publish its latest model, Claude Mythos.
The creators of the Claude chatbot are warning the world directly: AI development has reached a critical threshold. Platforms are approaching the ability to recursively self-improve without human participation. In this regard, Anthropic is calling for a pause in development. This creates a unique paradox: a company ready to go public and bring profit to shareholders is simultaneously questioning the very possibility of further uncontrolled technological development.
Legal Revolution: Public Benefit Corporation
There is a detail in the press release that could be more important than financial indicators. Anthropic is registered not as a standard corporation (C-Corp) or LLC, but as a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC).
This is a legal status that obliges a business to seek not only commercial profit but also to positively influence the development of society. For a company that declares the risks of self-replicating AI, this status becomes not just a marketing move, but a legal foundation. It is a "small revolution" in corporate law that could determine how AI decisions will be regulated in the future.
Absence from the Pentagon List
Another curious fact accompanying the IPO announcement concerns government contracts. The press release came out shortly after the U.S. Department of Defense (Pentagon) concluded an agreement with eight leading tech companies: OpenAI, SpaceX, Nvidia, Oracle, Google, Microsoft, AWS, and Reflection.
Anthropic was demonstrably absent from this list. Given that the company positions itself as a leader in the field of safe AI, its absence from the defense contract against the backdrop of preparations for a public offering raises many questions about the company's strategy and its relationship with the government sector.