OpenAI Postpones IPO Plans to 2027 as Anthropic Prepares to Debut First

A Shift in the AI Public Market Race

OpenAI is currently inclined to postpone its public market debut until next year, shifting its target to 2027. The creator of ChatGPT had previously prepared for a public offering as early as the third or fourth quarter of 2026, and had already filed confidentially with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. However, internal deliberations suggest the company may step back, potentially allowing its primary competitor, Anthropic, to enter the public markets first. Anthropic, which has also filed confidentially with regulators, is reportedly evaluating an initial public offering as soon as October 2026.

The Push for a Trillion-Dollar Valuation

At the heart of OpenAI's strategic hesitation is an ambitious valuation target. Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman has urged his advisory team, which includes Goldman Sachs Group Inc. along with other bankers and lawyers, to secure a valuation of at least 1 trillion dollars for the company. This represents a significant step up from OpenAI's most recent private valuation of 730 billion dollars. Advisers have cautioned that rushing into a 2026 listing might force the startup to accept a valuation below the 1 trillion dollar threshold, whereas waiting until 2027 provides a more realistic path to achieving Altman's target.

Market Headwinds and the SpaceX Precedent

External market forces have strongly influenced this change in direction. Financial advisers have pointed to recent volatility in global technology shares and a decline in chip stocks as reasons for caution. A major warning sign came from the recent public debut of SpaceX. While the aerospace company completed a historic initial public offering by raising in excess of 85 billion dollars and securing a valuation of 1.77 trillion dollars during its debut, its stock price subsequently declined to 153 dollars after previously peaking at 202 dollars. This downward slide, combined with broader market instability, has raised concerns that retail investors may lack the appetite to support another mega-scale technology offering in the near term.

Whether Anthropic's upcoming debut will validate the public market's appetite for artificial intelligence or serve as another cautionary tale remains the critical question for OpenAI's waiting executives.