Once viewed as an underdog, Anthropic has surged ahead
En un momento en que la inteligencia artificial redefine el orden económico global, OpenAI avanza hacia los mercados públicos con el respaldo de los grandes bancos de Wall Street. La empresa, que construyó su reputación como pionera del sector, ahora enfrenta la presión de un rival que la supera en valoración, mientras prepara lo que podría ser una de las ofertas públicas más significativas de la década. Este movimiento no es solo financiero: es una declaración sobre quién liderará la próxima era tecnológica.
- Anthropic acaba de recaudar 65.000 millones de dólares y alcanzó una valoración de 965.000 millones, superando a OpenAI por primera vez y sacudiendo la jerarquía del sector.
- OpenAI responde con urgencia: negocia con Citigroup y JPMorgan para sumarse a Goldman Sachs y Morgan Stanley como suscriptores de su esperada salida a bolsa.
- La empresa podría presentar su registro confidencial de IPO en cuestión de semanas, convirtiendo meses de especulación en movimientos concretos e irreversibles.
- La secuencia importa: la OPV de OpenAI llegaría después de la de SpaceX —valorada en 75.000 millones— pero posiblemente antes que la de Anthropic, lo que definirá quién dicta las reglas del capital en IA.
- Nada está sellado aún: las fuentes advierten que las conversaciones con los bancos podrían no concretarse, y el resultado final permanece abierto.
OpenAI se acerca a los mercados públicos. La compañía de inteligencia artificial ha mantenido conversaciones con Citigroup y JPMorgan Chase para que se unan a Goldman Sachs y Morgan Stanley como suscriptores de lo que podría ser una salida a bolsa histórica antes de que termine el año. Según fuentes que hablaron bajo condición de anonimato, la empresa podría presentar un registro confidencial de IPO en las próximas semanas, aunque ninguna de las partes involucradas ha querido confirmar los detalles.
El contexto competitivo añade urgencia al movimiento. Anthropic, que durante años fue vista como la retadora, anunció esta semana una ronda de financiación de 65.000 millones de dólares que la valoró en 965.000 millones, superando la última valoración conocida de OpenAI, fijada en 852.000 millones. Ese cambio en la percepción de los inversores representa un giro notable en la narrativa del sector.
OpenAI, sin embargo, no ha permanecido inmóvil. En el último año ha acelerado su crecimiento de ingresos gracias al desarrollo de herramientas de agentes de IA capaces de ejecutar tareas complejas de forma autónoma, lo que ha atraído a grandes clientes empresariales y le ha permitido competir en un terreno donde Anthropic también avanza.
El panorama de las grandes OPVs tecnológicas se perfila como extraordinario. SpaceX prepara lo que podría ser la mayor salida a bolsa de la historia, con una valoración cercana a los 75.000 millones de dólares. OpenAI llegaría después, pero probablemente antes que Anthropic, cuya propia OPV se espera para finales de este año o principios del próximo. La secuencia de estas operaciones redefinirá la estructura de capital de la industria de la inteligencia artificial y establecerá una nueva jerarquía entre sus protagonistas.
OpenAI is moving closer to going public. The artificial intelligence company has been in talks with Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase about joining Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley as underwriters for what could be a landmark initial public offering later this year, according to people with knowledge of the discussions who spoke on condition of anonymity.
These conversations represent a significant step forward in the company's path to the public markets. If both banks sign on, OpenAI would have assembled a formidable roster of Wall Street heavyweights to shepherd the deal. The company is expected to file a confidential IPO registration statement in the coming weeks, according to reporting from Bloomberg News. None of the parties involved—OpenAI, Citigroup, JPMorgan, or the other banks—would comment on the matter.
The timing matters. OpenAI's push toward an IPO comes as the company faces mounting competitive pressure in the artificial intelligence sector. Anthropic, once viewed as an underdog in the field, has surged in recent months. The company announced this week that it raised $65 billion in a funding round that valued it at $965 billion, eclipsing OpenAI's most recent valuation of $852 billion. That gap signals a dramatic shift in how investors are assessing the competitive landscape.
Yet OpenAI has not stood still. Over the past year, the company has accelerated its revenue growth through advances in AI agent tools—software that can perform complex tasks autonomously. These capabilities have proven attractive to enterprise customers, allowing OpenAI to gain ground in a market where Anthropic has also been making inroads. The race between the two companies has become one of the defining narratives in technology.
The IPO market for AI companies is shaping up to be extraordinary. SpaceX, Elon Musk's aerospace company, is expected to launch what could be the largest IPO ever, with a valuation around $75 billion. OpenAI's offering would likely arrive after SpaceX but potentially before Anthropic, which is also planning a major public market debut either late this year or early next year. The sequence of these offerings will reshape the capital structure of the AI industry and establish a new hierarchy among its leading players.
Whether Citigroup and JPMorgan ultimately participate in OpenAI's IPO remains uncertain. Sources cautioned that these discussions may not result in formal underwriting roles, and other investment banks could still join the effort. But the fact that OpenAI is in active conversations with multiple tier-one financial institutions signals that the company is serious about moving forward. The filing could come within weeks.
Notable Quotes
Conversations with Citigroup and JPMorgan may not result in their participation in the IPO, and other investment banks could also be involved— People familiar with the discussions
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does it matter which banks OpenAI chose? Aren't they all basically the same?
Not really. Goldman and Morgan Stanley have deep relationships with tech founders and boards. Adding Citi and JPMorgan—the biggest banks by assets—signals OpenAI wants institutional credibility, not just tech-world prestige. It's a statement about scale.
So this is just about optics?
Partly. But these banks also have massive distribution networks to sell shares to pension funds, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds. They're the machinery that moves billions.
The article mentions Anthropic's valuation jumped ahead. Does that change OpenAI's IPO plans?
It might accelerate them. If your rival just proved the market values AI companies higher than you thought, you want to get to the public markets before sentiment shifts again. Speed becomes strategic.
Is there a chance this IPO doesn't happen?
Always. Markets can freeze. Regulators could tighten scrutiny on AI. But the fact that they're filing confidentially in weeks suggests the company's board believes the window is open now.
What happens to these companies after they go public?
They answer to shareholders. That changes everything—how fast they can move, what risks they take, how much they spend on safety research versus growth. It's a different animal.