Anthropic Files for IPO With 50.1% Founder Voting Power — SkimNews
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- Anthropic announced on October 26, 2026, that it had filed an S-1 with the SEC, planning to list Class A shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under “ANT”; the share count and price range remain unset, and Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are named first among 24 underwriters.
- Anthropic generated $16.29 billion in first-half 2026 revenue, up from $1.16 billion a year earlier, but posted an $80.7 billion net loss; $72.4 billion came from fair-value changes in convertible notes and other instruments, leaving a $693 million operating loss.
- Anthropic held $112.4 billion in cash and equivalents plus $19.3 billion in short-term investments as of June 30, and reported more than 1,900 customers generating at least $1 million over the prior 12 months as of September 30, including about 250 at $10 million or more.
- Long-Term Benefit Trust will elect a majority of Anthropic’s board through a special class of stock under the proposed structure; its five trustees are financially disinterested, while Anthropic remains a public benefit corporation required to balance shareholder interests with those affected by its conduct.
- Anthropic will issue a single Class F share to an entity owned by its seven co-founders, carrying 50.1% of voting power on most shareholder matters and making the company a “controlled company” under Nasdaq rules; Class A shares get one vote each, and the filing says the structure “may effectively eliminate” holders’ influence over major decisions and changes of control.
- David Sacks said “Whether it serves the public good remains to be seen” about Anthropic’s fund after the company said each of its seven co-founders would pledge 80% of their personal equity to philanthropy; Anthropic also placed 847 million non-voting shares, or 5% of fully diluted shares, into a wholly owned public-benefit subsidiary.
- Reuters reported that backers of Anthropic’s confidential June SEC draft hoped for a valuation above $2 trillion, after the company raised $65 billion in May at a $965 billion valuation.
Why it matters: At IPO, Class A investors would receive one vote per share while the co-founders’ vehicle will hold 50.1% of voting power; Anthropic’s filing warns that public influence over major decisions and changes of control is limited. The five-trustee Long-Term Benefit Trust will elect a majority of the board rather than Class A holders.
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