Michael Burry argues that calls to slow AI development by OpenAI, Anthropic and other leaders may be self-serving attempts to protect market dominance against rising competition rather than genuine safety concerns. He suggests that safety warnings could mask economic challenges as model training costs rise and competition intensifies, while also potentially supporting inflated private valuations ahead of planned IPOs.
Sam Altman said OpenAI going public in 2026 would be ill-advised, delaying its IPO to 2027 to prioritize AI safety and alignment over a potential $1 trillion valuation. Rival Anthropic plans to go public before year-end at a valuation potentially reaching $2.3 trillion, while Altman signaled the industry may coordinate to slow AI development.
Nvidia is reportedly considering a $10 billion anchor investment in Anthropic's upcoming IPO, which could value the AI company near $2 trillion. Amazon already has significantly greater exposure to Anthropic through $8 billion invested, $5 billion committed, potential additional investments up to $20 billion, and over $100 billion in planned AWS spending over ten years.
Anthropic is preparing for an IPO later this fall that could be the world's largest, potentially raising $100 billion at a $2 trillion valuation. The company has raised $130 billion from 300 institutional investors including tech giants, Wall Street firms, and venture capital funds, with major stakeholders like Amazon and Alphabet poised to see significant returns. The listing comes amid growing concerns about AI safety and data center backlash.