Anthropic Reports $80.7 Billion Loss in First Half of 2026 as AI Costs Continue to Rise
Anthropic’s net loss grew significantly to $80.7 billion during the first half of 2026, largely because of an increase in the estimated fair value of bonds that can eventually be converted into shares of the AI company. The figures were disclosed in a draft prospectus for its planned initial public offering (IPO), reviewed by Reuters.
The San Francisco-based company is reportedly preparing to go public in November. However, following its latest financial disclosures, some investors are reconsidering its potential valuation, with expectations falling to approximately $1.5 trillion, according to a Reuters report published last week.
Anthropic’s first-half loss was considerably higher than the $13 billion loss recorded during the same period last year. According to the draft prospectus, approximately $72 billion of the loss came from an accounting adjustment reflecting an increase in the estimated value of bonds that could eventually be converted into company shares. This charge does not represent an equivalent amount of cash spent on day-to-day operations.
The financial results highlight the enormous expenses involved in the competition to develop artificial intelligence, as investors increasingly question whether the billions of dollars being invested in computing hardware and data centers will eventually produce sufficient returns.
Anthropic has committed to spending at least $518 billion over the next decade on cloud computing, computing capacity and infrastructure.
The company also spent nearly $9 billion on computing resources and infrastructure during the first half of 2026, compared with $2.3 billion during the same period a year earlier, according to the S-1 filing. Anthropic did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Financing costs and revenue growth
During an investor meeting on October 14, Anthropic reportedly told prospective IPO investors that its third-quarter revenue increased by 45% to $16.8 billion compared with the previous quarter. Reuters reported the figures, citing people familiar with the meeting.
Although the revenue growth helped address some concerns about the high costs of developing AI systems, some investors were disappointed by the slower pace of quarter-over-quarter growth. The company’s revenue had more than doubled between the first and second quarters, reaching $11.6 billion in the second quarter.
A less enthusiastic response to Anthropic’s IPO could also affect the broader AI market. Investors see the offering as an important indicator of the sector’s near-term prospects, particularly as rival OpenAI considers a potential public listing next year.
In September, Reuters reported that Anthropic recorded a net loss of $42 billion in 2025, with much of that figure also attributed to an accounting charge associated with the estimated value of convertible notes. As the company’s valuation increased, the estimated fair value of those financial instruments tripled compared with the previous year.
Without that accounting charge, Anthropic’s operating loss in 2025 would have been approximately $8.1 billion, against revenue of $4.6 billion.
Despite its mounting expenses, Anthropic has benefited from growing demand for Claude Code, its AI-powered coding assistant. Developers use the tool to write software, create applications and support other programming tasks.