Anthropic IPO faces AI, data centre backlash: Can it still beat SpaceX record?

Anthropic is preparing for one of the biggest IPOs ever while simultaneously warning prospective investors that the very technology driving its valuation is facing growing public opposition. In a report by CNBC, people familiar with the development has confirmed that Dario Amodei-led company will list negative sentiment towards AI and data centre will be listed as a risk factor.

Anthropic is heading towards a potential $2 trillion public-market debut, a valuation that could challenge SpaceX’s record for the biggest IPO. But as the Claude maker prepares to enter the public markets, it will also have to confront a less flattering reality: growing opposition to artificial intelligence and the data centres needed to power it.

That puts Anthropic in an unusual position: the same AI boom driving expectations for a record-breaking valuation is also creating one of the risks the company will have to disclose to potential shareholders.

Anthropic’s ‘$2 trillion’ IPO ambition

Anthropic has been holding preliminary “test-the-water” meetings with bankers and investors in San Francisco as it prepares for its public debut, CNBC reported.

Investors are reportedly discussing an IPO valuation of around $2 trillion or more, according to the Financial Times. That would put Anthropic above SpaceX’s roughly $1.77 trillion valuation when Elon Musk’s company went public in June and potentially make the Claude maker the largest IPO ever.

The $2 trillion figure, however, is investor speculation rather than a valuation formally announced by Anthropic. The company has not publicly set an IPO valuation or date.

Anthropic confidentially filed to go public in June 2026, giving it the option to proceed with a listing once regulatory review is completed and market conditions allow.

But AI backlash is now an IPO risk

The potential record comes with a complication.

Anthropic is reportedly going to warn prospective investors about negative sentiment towards AI and opposition to data-centre construction. That is significant because the company’s rapid expansion depends heavily on access to computing infrastructure.

Like rival AI companies, Anthropic is pushing infrastructure partners to build data centres at speed to meet demand for its models and services. Hyperscalers are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on capital expenditure to expand data-centre capacity and acquire the chips needed to run advanced AI systems.

But public support for that expansion is weak.

A Gallup survey published in May found that seven in 10 Americans opposed AI data-centre construction in their area, with nearly half saying they were “strongly opposed”. Only around a quarter supported such projects.

Data centres become a political issue

Opposition to data centres is also moving into politics, with officials from both sides of the US political aisle pushing back against new developments.

In Florida, data-centre restrictions became an issue in the Republican gubernatorial primary, while Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro signed an executive order imposing stricter standards on data-centre development.

Investors are already asking about the risks

Anthropic’s preliminary meetings with investors suggest that the concerns extend beyond public opposition.

Anthropic's Chief Financial Officer Krishna Rao has reportedly faced questions about competition, pressure on margins from open-source AI models and what would happen if construction of data centres slows.

Anthropic recently crossed a $65 billion annual revenue run rate, according to CNBC. Reuters also reported that Anthropic is forecasting annual revenue of $190 billion-$200 billion by 2028.

Can Anthropic justify a $2 trillion valuation?

Anthropic’s latest private-market valuation was close to $1 trillion, meaning a potetial $2 trillion IPO would represent a dramatic increase in value in a relatively short period.

Investors betting on that valuation are effectively betting that Anthropic can sustain extraordinary growth while navigating rising computing costs, competition and infrastructure constraints.

The company is already preparing for the financial demands of becoming public. Reuters reported this week that Anthropic is arranging a revolving credit facility that could exceed $10 billion, with major banks competing for positions ahead of the IPO.

SpaceX has a record to defend

SpaceX currently holds the record for the largest IPO, following its June 2026 debut at a valuation of roughly $1.77 trillion. Anthropic’s reported $2 trillion ambition would put it above that mark.

But Anthropic’s challenge is not simply to beat SpaceX on valuation.

It must convince investors that its extraordinary growth can continue at a time when the infrastructure powering the AI boom is facing public opposition and political scrutiny.

That makes Anthropic’s potential IPO a test of two competing forces shaping the AI industry: investors’ extraordinary appetite for AI growth and the growing resistance to the technology’s expanding physical footprint.