Anthropic advances toward IPO and signs $20B Akamai cloud deal

AI startup Anthropic is positioning itself for a potential initial public offering (IPO) following the confidential submission of a draft S-1 registration statement to the SEC in June 2026. Market speculation and prediction markets, such as Kalshi, suggest Anthropic may go public before OpenAI, with some traders assigning a 93% probability to Anthropic announcing its IPO first. While a definitive timeline has not been set, some reports indicate a potential debut as early as late 2026.

In a major infrastructure move, Anthropic has entered into a multi-year cloud services agreement with Akamai Technologies. The deal, valued at $11.6 billion, has the potential to reach $20 billion over seven years. As part of this arrangement, Akamai has issued a warrant allowing Anthropic to purchase up to 5% of Akamai’s common stock, contingent upon meeting specific spending milestones.

Additionally, Anthropic has committed $40 million to Public First Action, a bipartisan 501(c)(4) organization focused on AI policy and safeguards. The company has also maintained significant backing from established players, including Amazon, which has committed billions in investments to the AI firm.