Google, Anthropic Move to Corner Funding as AI Cash War Escalates

Anthropic races ahead of OpenAI in push toward an IPO

Google seeks another $80 billion after borrowing $85 billion

AI’s top three names could absorb $200 billion from equity markets

AI rivalry is becoming a capital-raising war, not just a technology race

Profitability matters more than equity-supply pressures in deciding the rally’s next phase

Everyone is racing to pull in money faster, in bigger amounts and from every possible source. The backdrop is spending on AI infrastructure.

On June 1, Claude maker Anthropic said it had confidentially submitted preliminary paperwork to regulators for an initial public offering. Until recently, many investors had expected OpenAI to go public in September and Anthropic around October, after SpaceX, which is expected to list on June 12. Instead, Anthropic unexpectedly became the first to move toward the public market.

Anthropic has already raised a combined $95 billion in two private-market rounds this year alone. Its valuation soared from $380 billion in February to $965 billion in May, overtaking rival OpenAI for the first time. The company is now trying to build on that momentum and move first to capture public-market capital. It is not the only one. Along with SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic, high-profile AI companies including Databricks, Canva and Oura are also preparing listings this year.

On the same day, Google parent Alphabet announced plans to raise $80 billion through share issuance. That exceeds the up-to-$75 billion target for the SpaceX IPO, which would be the largest in history. Alphabet plans to raise $30 billion through common stock and mandatory convertible preferred shares, another $40 billion through an at-the-market program and the remaining $10 billion from Berkshire Hathaway. Google has already raised more than $85 billion in debt over the past year in global bond markets and generated $174 billion in operating cash flow. Even so, it is now turning to equity issuance for fresh capital.

The move underscores how the AI race has become a full-scale funding war rather than simply a contest over technology. The key issue is no longer just which model performs better. It is also who can secure the computing power needed to run AI and the physical infrastructure needed to support it. That helps explain why AI semiconductors, data centers, power infrastructure and networking hardware have led the rally.

For a time, semiconductors were back at center stage, especially memory, CPUs and AI accelerators at the heart of computing capacity. AI demand was so strong that the immediate task was securing more compute. But as capital needs continue to mount, markets are again becoming more sensitive to profitability and cost efficiency. Investors accept that AI demand is real and token usage is high. What they want now is proof that the technology is delivering higher productivity and lower costs. Within AI hardware, investor focus could shift back toward power efficiency, optical communications and high-speed interconnects.

In this edition of “Bin Nan-sae’s Wall Street Without Gaps,” we take a closer look at what the wave of AI IPOs and large share sales means for equities. From a bearish perspective, this is the bill coming due for the AI rally. SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI alone are projected to raise a combined $200 billion. That could pull money away from existing stocks and trigger large passive-fund rebalancing.

There is also a more optimistic view. New listings in pure-play AI and space infrastructure could spur a reappraisal of emerging industries and draw more investment demand across the broader value chain. Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs have also argued that demand for equities still exceeds supply.

In the near term, however, the bigger issue than market flows will be whether these companies can pass a profitability test. The listings of SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI will mark the first time the economics of AI companies are tested in public markets with hard numbers. Investors are no longer satisfied with hearing that AI will change the world. They will closely scrutinize margin per token, the pace of revenue growth relative to cloud costs and data-center spending, and when these companies can turn cash-flow positive.

If they clear that test, the AI rally could move into a stronger second phase. If they fail to prove their profitability and productivity story with numbers, it may become harder to justify such heavy investment and lofty valuations.

The video examines in greater detail why Anthropic is rushing toward an IPO, how the wave of blockbuster offerings could affect the broader stock market, and concerns that an early index inclusion for SpaceX could distort passive flows and overall market demand. It also briefly highlights the key points investors waiting for AI IPOs should watch.

Bin Nan-sae, New York correspondent, Hankyung.com, binthere@hankyung.com