Anthropic’s US$965b valuation intensifies rivalry with OpenAI

Anthropic’s new US$965 billion post‑money valuation, following a US$65 billion raise, has pushed it ahead of OpenAI’s roughly US$852 billion and set up a high‑stakes race for a trillion‑dollar valuation.

The rivalry is deeply personal: Anthropic founder Dario Amodei left OpenAI after clashes with Sam Altman, including reported disagreements over plans to sell powerful AI systems to nuclear‑armed states, and has kept all six co‑founders while OpenAI has lost eight of eleven, with one jumping to Anthropic.

With both groups lining up similar fourth‑quarter IPO windows, committing more than US$1 trillion combined to compute, and outside managers like GMO arguing 270‑times‑revenue valuations look like “dot‑com 2.0”, the contest now blends technical, ethical and financial risks in a way that gives investors plenty to debate.