Anthropic Weighs New AI Model Release to Counter OpenAI Ahead of IPO, Sources Say

Anthropic is considering the release of a new artificial intelligence model to counter rival OpenAI's recent market momentum, according to three people familiar with the matter. The potential launch comes as the company navigates competitive pressures ahead of an expected initial public offering (IPO) and just weeks after its CEO called for an industry-wide slowdown on AI capabilities.

Competitive Pressures Mount

The deliberation follows the successful September 3 launch of OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra, which has gained significant traction among enterprise users. The new model's performance has prompted some investors to re-evaluate Anthropic's position as the leading provider of enterprise AI, the sources said.

Recent data indicates a shift in the market:

• According to corporate expense platform Ramp, OpenAI's Astra accounted for about 13% of enterprise AI spending, compared to 8% for Anthropic's Claude Fable model.
• OpenRouter, a platform that routes developer traffic, reported that its users spent more on OpenAI models than Anthropic models last week, the first time this has occurred in over two and a half years.

Balancing Safety and Strategy

The potential new model release presents a strategic dilemma for Anthropic. On September 12, CEO Dario Amodei published a widely discussed essay calling on the AI community to "slow the pace at which we improve the capabilities of AI models" to address safety concerns. The company is now evaluating the safety of its next model as part of its release deliberations, one of the sources noted.

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Discussions within the company also involve balancing investment in new models against the need to strengthen profitability, according to people familiar with the company's thinking. This reflects broader industry pressure to demonstrate sustainable cash flow amid rising interest rates and competition from open-source AI providers.

Market Position and Outlook

Despite recent gains by OpenAI, Anthropic maintains a significant revenue advantage. The company's annualized revenue run rate surpassed $65 billion by the end of July, up from approximately $9 billion at the end of 2025. By comparison, OpenAI’s annualized revenue run rate exceeded $40 billion in July.

Investors anticipate that leadership in the AI space will shift repeatedly as new models are released, making any single company's advantage potentially short-lived. A larger long-term challenge for both firms is the rise of open-source models, which could lower costs and enable companies like Meta Platforms to reduce their reliance on third-party providers.

Regarding its public debut, Anthropic could push its IPO to after the November U.S. midterm elections, sources said. Meanwhile, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman confirmed his company will not go public in 2026, citing AI safety concerns.