Anthropic’s much-hyped IPO is looking shakier after a brutal sell-off in AI stocks, with major investors now saying the company may have to cut its target valuation by roughly a third — or even half — from prior expectations. What’s happening - Anthropic filed last month to list on Nasdaq under the ticker ANT and had been pushing to go public the week before Thanksgiving, aiming to raise as much as $100 billion at a valuation reporters have cited around $1.5 trillion. - After the AI rout, three big investors told The Wall Street Journal the valuation will likely need to come down; one suggested it could be closer to $1 trillion. Another investor said Anthropic might raise nearer $80 billion, and some raised the possibility of a delay until market conditions stabilize. - Anthropic executives and advisers are expected to meet imminently to reassess plans. Why markets turned - The sell-off in AI and chip names was sharp: the S&P 500 fell 4.4% and the Nasdaq-100 plunged 6.3% — both their worst single-day drops since April 2025. The Philadelphia semiconductor index slid 12.3% and Nvidia tumbled 9.2% in that session; stocks partially recovered the following morning. - Political risk fed the rout: Democrats are preparing bills that would restrict data center expansions tied to rising electricity costs, require independent testing of advanced AI systems, and clarify liability standards for AI-related harms. The party also plans tighter scrutiny of leading AI firms, including Anthropic. High-profile figures such as Sen. Bernie Sanders have even called for a “national data center moratorium,” and the incoming Texas governor has pledged pauses on data center approvals in a state that hosts a large share of U.S. planned capacity. What analysts and investors are saying - Technology commentator Richard Windsor described a potential IPO delay as an “escalating risk,” while PitchBook analyst Nalin Patel noted a postponement would shield Anthropic from near-term valuation pressure if the correction persists. - Some investors want to see Anthropic’s October operating results before accepting any valuation haircut. The company reported an annualized revenue run rate above $80 billion at the end of October and held $146.6 billion in cash as of Sept. 30, according to the Journal. Prediction markets reflect growing uncertainty - Traders on crypto-friendly prediction platforms have pushed back odds for a timely listing. Polymarket put the chance Anthropic lists by Nov. 20 at 43% and by year-end at 71%. Kalshi’s market for an official confirmation showed odds of a pre-Dec. 1 announcement slipping to 59% and pre-Jan. 1 to 68%. Decrypt Predict, run by Decrypt’s parent Dastan, still placed the odds of an Anthropic IPO before 2027 at 71%. - These markets — used heavily by crypto-native traders — are underscoring real-time shifts in investor expectations. A valuation that has already come down - The $1.5 trillion figure under discussion is below earlier reports. In September, a leaked draft filing reportedly showed Anthropic had been targeting a valuation near $2 trillion. Bottom line Anthropic still sits on large cash reserves and fast-growing revenue, but volatile AI equities, rising regulatory scrutiny, and investor wariness have turned its IPO into a high-stakes timing decision. Expect more clarity after the company’s internal deliberations and any October results that are released. Disclosure: This article was drafted with assistance from Claude, an AI model developed by Anthropic. Read more AI-generated news on: https://app.chaingpt.org/news