Anthropic reported third-quarter revenue of $16.8 billion to prospective investors, up from $11.6 billion in the second quarter.
By the numbers: Revenue climbed from $4.7 billion in the first quarter to $11.6 billion in the second and $16.8 billion in the third, a 45% gain quarter over quarter, per the BBC.
- The company told investors it was profitable on an adjusted basis and cash-flow positive, generating $1.70 in revenue for every dollar spent on computing power, according to the Financial Times.
The big picture: Investors expect Anthropic to reach $110 billion in annualized revenue by year end, according to The Wall Street Journal. The IPO is reportedly slated for November.
Between the lines: Anthropic and OpenAI revenue figures are the clearest public gauge of whether AI demand can carry the hundreds of billions being committed to data centers.
The other side: The briefing landed in the middle of a tech selloff. Softbank fell more than 9% on Thursday morning in Asia, Samsung dropped 9.4% and SK Hynix fell 10.8%, per the BBC.
- Broadcom chief executive Hock Tan said Monday in Singapore that many investors have "no clue" and have set "extreme expectations only to find out that it is almost like they are in a casino."
What's next: An Anthropic spokesperson declined to comment. OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said in September that his company will hold off on going public this year while it works through safety concerns.
- Anthropic opened an office in Singapore on Wednesday, the same day as the investor briefing, per the BBC.
Why it matters: A listing would put the first pure-play frontier AI company on the public market, handing ordinary investors a live price on the AI boom and forcing quarterly disclosure of what the models actually earn.
