Whalesbook
OpenAI and Anthropic are racing to launch their IPOs, but a major disagreement over how they report revenue is emerging. Investors should look beyond the hype to understand the actual financial health and cash burn of these AI giants.
What Happened
Artificial intelligence leaders OpenAI and Anthropic have both moved toward public listings, signaling a major shift in the AI sector. According to reports, Anthropic filed confidentially with U.S. regulators on June 1, 2026, with OpenAI following shortly after. This race to the public markets is not just about timing; it highlights a growing competition between the two firms to secure investor interest and set the valuation standard for the artificial intelligence industry.
Why Revenue Reporting Matters
A critical point for investors during these IPOs will be the difference in how the two companies report their financials. There is a clear disagreement between them regarding how revenue is calculated. Anthropic typically reports gross revenue, which includes the total payment from customers before passing a share to partners like Amazon or Google. OpenAI, however, reports net revenue, which is the amount left after accounting for payments to its partner, Microsoft.
For investors, this is a vital distinction. Gross revenue figures can make a company look larger, while net revenue figures provide a clearer picture of the actual cash flowing into the company after costs. When these companies eventually share their official IPO documents, investors will need to carefully adjust these figures to compare the two businesses on an equal basis. Comparing them without this adjustment could lead to a misunderstanding of their actual scale and profitability.
The Capital Intensity Question
Beyond the reporting debate, investors should focus on the heavy cash requirements of both businesses. Developing large artificial intelligence models requires immense computing power, which is expensive. Both companies rely heavily on cloud infrastructure provided by tech giants. Anthropic is supported by Amazon and Google, while OpenAI operates in a close partnership with Microsoft.
This dependency means that a large portion of their revenue is funneled back into infrastructure costs. An important question for any potential shareholder is how the companies plan to reach long-term profitability when the cost of training and running these models remains so high. Investors will need to analyze how much money the companies have left after paying for these cloud services.
Risks and Market Context
The rivalry between the two firms is intense, with each company accelerating the release of new tools and features to stay ahead of the other. While this drives innovation, it also creates pressure to spend rapidly on research and development. This environment of high spending and aggressive competition can impact profit margins. Furthermore, the regulatory environment for AI is still developing, which adds another layer of uncertainty for public market investors.
What Investors Should Track
As the IPO process moves forward, investors should look for the official prospectus filed with regulators. This document will be the most accurate source for their financial data, including exact revenue, debt levels, and cash burn rates. It will also reveal the actual ownership structure and any agreements with their major tech partners. Keeping an eye on management commentary regarding their path to sustainable profit will be essential, as the industry shift from pure growth to profitability could significantly impact how the market values these firms.