Key Points
- Anthropic’s new Claude Mythos model can detect software vulnerabilities across major systems, and access is being limited to select partners to prevent misuse.
- AI tools could replace or undercut traditional software companies by delivering similar or better services at lower cost, contributing to sharp declines in many software stocks.
- Anthropic is currently partnering rather than fully replacing incumbents. Instead of outright disruption, it is integrating its tools with companies like Microsoft, Amazon, and Slack, helping accelerate adoption across the industry.
- A massive IPO is likely, backed by rapid growth and soaring valuation. Anthropic could go public in 2026 at around a $60B raise, with valuations already near $380B and revenue growth accelerating, though profitability remains a key concern.
Anthropic continues to power ahead of its competitors with its artificial intelligence (“AI”) models as it lays the groundwork for a massive initial public offering (“IPO”), likely sometime later this year. The AI upstart’s latest release is called Claude Mythos Preview, which can identify vulnerable programming code so that programmers can fix it before it causes problems.
As part of what Anthropic calls Project Glasswing, a few tech companies will get access to the model and test it for defensive uses. These firms include a tech who’s who: Microsoft (MSFT), Nvidia (NVDA), Amazon (AMZN), CrowdStrike (CRWD), and Broadcom (AVGO), among others.
Anthropic states that the model has already discovered thousands of vulnerabilities, with some in every major operating system and browser. These partner companies will get a chance to see how the model works – how valuable it can be – and fix flaws before others get access to it.
“We do not plan to make Mythos Preview generally available,” says Anthropic’s press release. “Our goal is to deploy Mythos-class models safely at scale, but first we need safeguards that reliably block their most dangerous outputs.”
The implication: This new model is so powerful that we can’t let just anybody have it.
It’s great public relations, positioning Anthropic as the “powerful, but good” AI company, as it lets some of tech’s biggest firms patch up their code before the bad guys can get a look at it. Heck, it’s even giving $100 million in credits to partners and others who support critical software.
Those features make it a perfect way to warm up investors and keep eyes on the company, as rumors swirl about the timeline for the company to conduct an IPO. An Anthropic IPO would likely rank among the largest IPOs of all time – but somehow maybe not necessarily the hottest, as 2026 may feature several of the largest debuts ever.
How Anthropic Is Massively Disrupting Enterprise Software
Anthropic’s latest news follows a tumultuous period earlier this year. Tumultuous for software stocks, that is. Investors have been worried that Anthropic and other leading AI companies, such as OpenAI, could totally disrupt the enterprise software businesses.
The emergence of AI-based products could be particularly problematic for software companies, since they could potentially be more effective and deliver service at a much lower cost. That may leave software companies, where the key assets are coders and their apps, in the cold. If they have no other significant revenue streams, they would have little value as companies.
These existential worries sent software stocks reeling, with many falling 30% to 50% in just weeks at the start of the year. Many haven’t recovered yet or are sinking even lower.
For example, cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike bounced back somewhat in late February and March after a slide to begin the year. But it has been falling lower in recent weeks. Its choppy price movements over the period suggest that not all investors have abandoned hope, though.
So, Anthropic’s recent announcements about its cybersecurity features will likely continue to stoke fears that some investors have about its ability to take business from incumbents.
Famed Big Short investor Michael Burry recently stated that “Anthropic is eating Palantir’s lunch” on his Substack and a since-deleted post on social-media platform X.
Anthropic has been loud and proud about its recent developments, a move that keeps it front and center for investors in the lead-up to a potential IPO. It has announced a variety of tools for business, including a legal plug-in, Claude Code Security, code modernization apps, and more.
But it’s not replacing software companies, at least for now. Instead, it’s partnering with platforms such as Slack, DocuSign (DOCU), and LegalZoom (LZ) to incorporate its productivity tools. So, it looks less like full-on disruption than a rollout of tools that benefits all parties.
The rapid expansion of Anthropic in cybersecurity tools – and a tie-up with larger entities such as Amazon and Microsoft – could help push a wave of adoption of its tools across the industry.
So, fearful software investors will be keeping a close eye on Anthropic, especially if it manages to raise a multibillion-dollar war chest as part of an initial public offering in the near future.
Anthropic Weighing Options for Mega IPO in 2026
Speculation has been running rampant for months now that Anthropic will conduct its initial public offering in 2026. The company has already been talking with investment bankers about going public, and the rumors increasingly have dollar figures attached to them.
Initial reports have Anthropic targeting $60 billion in an October IPO, according to The Information. Such a capital raise would rank among the largest IPOs of all time, as the company is already valued privately at $380 billion. An IPO would likely push that market cap even higher.
The company’s valuation has soared in the last couple of years, as new funding rounds saw investors clamoring for shares:
- November 2024: Raised $4 billion at a $40 billion valuation
- March 2025: Raised $3.5 billion at a $61.5 billion valuation
- September 2025: Raised $13 billion at a $183 billion valuation
- February 2026: Raised $30 billion at a $380 billion valuation
Its latest valuations seemed to have outpaced its ability to increase its revenue until recently. But now its revenue seems to have reached a “hockey stick” inflection point – surpassing even management’s own projections.
For example, management had estimated 2026 annual run-rate revenue late last year between $20 billion to $26 billion. According to recent reports, this figure is now at $30 billion. Annual run-rate revenue is an estimate of a full year’s sales given current sales levels, perhaps for a quarter.
Now, Anthropic says it has more than 1,000 business customers paying more than $1 million annually for its Claude services. It continues to add clients and seems to be stealing them from rival OpenAI, such as its recent tie-up with Microsoft (MSFT). Microsoft owns 27% of OpenAI.
Despite all this revenue growth, the company needs to credibly answer the question of how much cash it’s burning and when it’s possible to break even. Investors will need to see a realistic story that Anthropic will turn profitable in a reasonable time frame as part of any IPO process.
Finally, a little more anecdotal evidence that an IPO is in the offing.
In April, the company held a tender offer that let outside investors buy shares from employees wanting to cash out. Investors couldn’t get the allocations they wanted, says a Bloomberg report.
So, it seems as if optimistic employees want to hold on to shares in anticipation of an even larger IPO payday, perhaps one that occurs in the near term rather than farther out.
It’s exactly the kind of news that the Wall Street hype machine and public relations departments love to circulate before an IPO – getting investors even hotter for a future offering.
With OpenAI and SpaceX also exploring going public, it seems like 2026 could be the hottest year for IPOs ever.
Regards,
James Royal
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