The year 2026 is setting up to be the hottest year for IPOs in a long time. In fact, we may see the largest IPO ever come to market this year, and there’s a good chance we see several IPOs hitting the $100 billion threshold – so-called centicorns – that will get investors’ hearts racing.
In 2026 the IPO market will be boosted by a general positive outlook for stocks. The S&P 500 has turned in three straight years of double-digit returns, helping to juice investors’ “animal spirits.” It’s also supported by interest rates which, while still elevated from recent years, is expected to fall in the months ahead.
That’s already a far cry from just a few years ago, when the IPO market was all but frozen. In 2022, the Federal Reserve was aggressively raising short-term interest rates to fight inflation.
Stocks plummeted that year, and so did IPOs, from 1,078 debuts in 2021 to 202 the next year, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission. IPOs dipped further in 2023, to just 169.
So, it’s important that companies take advantage of the “IPO window” when it’s open. They max out their valuation, raise more money, and generally set a winning tone for the company. If they don’t hit the window, an IPO might not debut until years later, maybe even at a lower valuation.
Amid this backdrop and a fever pitch for AI stocks, it’s likely to be a great year for IPOs. While AI may be the hottest of the hot industries, defense and financial stocks may have a solid year, too.
Here are some of the hottest IPOs to watch in 2026 – and a few details to keep in mind before investing.
8 anticipated IPOs to follow in 2026
1. Anthropic
Anthropic is one of the big names in the AI space, and it’s already in the early stages of planning an IPO. The company behind the Claude chatbot has seen its valuation soar in recent funding rounds, running from a $40 billion in late 2024 to a $183 billion tally in September 2025. Plenty more could be on the way, too. That’s on the back of estimates for annual run-rate revenue that are projected to go up 7 times from 2025 to 2028 – absolutely stunning, if it happens.
Anthropic would be one of the hottest IPOs in 2026, though investors will want to keep an eye on its cash burn. Here are more details on an Anthropic IPO.
2. OpenAI
OpenAI is another big name in the AI sector, and an IPO would likely top even Anthropic’s IPO in size – if it came to market. The firm behind ChatGPT and the DALL-E text-to-image model has also seen its pre-IPO valuation surge as private investors scramble for a piece of the action. In October 2024, OpenAI was valued at $157 billion, while a year later this figure hit $500 billion – and an IPO would likely push that figure still higher.
One key issue for investors is OpenAI’s cash burn, which is estimated at $14 billion in 2026, and the company is not projected to start breaking even until 2030. So, investors will need to be comfortable with that glide path.
3. SpaceX
SpaceX is nothing if not ambitious, and despite all the competition from AI IPOs, CEO Elon Musk is targeting the largest IPO ever with SpaceX – an estimated $1.5 trillion. The company is best known for its Starlink satellite-based internet service and its rocket launches, but it has more in the pipeline, including plans for AI data centers in space. Unlike many IPOs that have come to market in recent years, SpaceX is already profitable. A SpaceX public offering could come at a key moment as defense- and space-related companies enjoy particular favor from governments. But investors really need to pay attention here to the valuation – which soared from $210 billion in July 2024 to about $800 billion at year-end 2025 – since this surge is due to the company putting its thumb on the scale. Here are further details on the SpaceX IPO and what’s going on.
4. Anduril Industries
Anduril Industries might not be the household name that some other potential IPOs are, but it’s an up-and-comer in the popular niche of defense. The maker of autonomous weapons and related software raised $2.5 billion at a $30.5 billion valuation in June 2025. This offering was 8 times oversubscribed, showing private investors really wanted in.
Anduril doubled its annual revenue to about $1 billion in 2024, and more is on the way. Last year it inked a new contract with the U.S. Army to produce AR/VR headset for soldiers. With the potential for greater government spending to modernize defense, Anduril could be a significant beneficiary of the move.
5. Databricks
Databricks has been a long-rumored IPO, but 2026 may finally be the year that this data analytics firm takes the plunge into the public market. In any normal year, Databricks might be the highest-profile IPO, but not this year, even if its valuation surpasses the $134 billion it reached in its latest funding round in December.
The company has been free-cash-flow positive for at least the last 12 months, and it hit run-rate revenue of $4.8 billion in the third quarter, growing at 55% year over year. The net retention rate – a measure of how much existing clients are increasing or decreasing their spending year over year – hit a blistering 140%, showing clients are rapidly increasing their uptake of Databricks’ services.
6. Plaid
Plaid is another long-rumored IPO candidate, and the fast-growing financial company may finally make its debut this year. Plaid helps apps connect with users’ bank accounts and make payments through fintech platforms such as Venmo. Revenue grew more than 25% in 2025, notching a record for the company. Plaid last raised money in April 2025, hitting up investors for $575 million, valuing the company at $6.1 billion.
Plaid has already been the subject of acquisition rumors, with Visa attempting to purchase the company in 2020 for $5.3 billion – a defensive move to protect Visa’s debit card business that eventually was blocked by the Department of Justice. Both are a far cry from the $13.4 billion valuation in 2021, and management attributes the subsequent decline to the high valuation multiples of that period. If 2026 isn’t the year for Plaid to IPO, management still indicates that a public debut is the direction it’s moving.
7. Revolut
Revolut is another financial that is looking at a debut soon, and this U.K.-based digital bank has seen impressive growth of late. In 2024, revenue soared 72%, to $4 billion, with pre-tax profit rising to $1.4 billion. In 2025, customers surpassed 65 million in more than 100 countries.
A November secondary share sale raised the company’s valuation to $75 billion, a 67% boost from an August 2024 valuation round. Revolut has applied for a full U.K. banking license, but that has been delayed due to concerns around risk management. When this issue is resolved, Revolut may be raring to IPO to take advantage of a ripping market, especially for fintech stocks.
8. Cerebras Systems
AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems offers a compelling pitch, and may target a second-quarter IPO, after delaying its debut plans last year. Management says its systems are faster and cheaper than those of market leader Nvidia (NVDA). Its wafer-scale chips can reportedly process the inference workloads on key AI models up to 20 times faster than Nvidia’s units. And Cerebras has lined up at least one AI heavyweight as a partner, agreeing in January to provide computing power to OpenAI through 2028 for an estimated $10 billion.
The AI chipmaker has a strong history of rising valuations. It raised cash at an $8 billion valuation in September before a planned raise at $22 billion in early 2026. AI is hot right now, and investors will be interested in companies that can capture some of Nvidia’s high margins. Here’s more on the Cerebras IPO and why it looks so interesting.
Good investing,
James Royal
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