The pace is staggering. In March 2025, Anthropic was valued at $61.5 billion. By September, $183 billion. February brought $380 billion. And now, at the end of May 2026, the next round is landing — at a valuation above $900 billion.
The Numbers
According to Bloomberg, Anthropic is closing a funding round this week that may top $30 billion. Sequoia Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, Altimeter Capital, and Greenoaks Capital Partners are expected to co-lead, each planning to invest roughly $2 billion.
This would make Anthropic the most valuable private AI company in the world for the first time, leapfrogging OpenAI’s $852 billion valuation from its March round.
Why Now?
The underlying business tells the story: Anthropic expects $10.9 billion in Q2 2026 revenue — and its first-ever quarterly operating profit. The annualized run rate is projected to break $50 billion by the end of June.
Enterprise customers now account for roughly 80% of revenue, with over 1,000 businesses spending more than $1 million annually on Claude. This isn’t hype-driven funding anymore — these are real business numbers.
The Bigger Picture
The speed of this valuation climb is extraordinary even by AI standards. A 14x increase in just over a year. Meanwhile, Anthropic is reportedly working toward a potential IPO as early as October.
OpenAI, for its part, just filed a confidential S-1 with the SEC. So the two companies aren’t just racing to build the best AI — they’re racing to the best IPO too. The key difference: Anthropic is now profitable, while OpenAI is reportedly losing $1.22 for every dollar of revenue it generates.
It’s going to be a fascinating summer.
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