AI giant Anthropic took a major step toward potentially the largest initial public offering in U.S. stock market history Monday. Going public could pay off for previous investors, including several with sports ties.
Anthropic, known for its Claude AI models and tools, filed paperwork on Monday for an IPO, under the ticker ANT. It hasn’t announced a value, though some expect it could debut at roughly $2 trillion.
In total, Anthropic has raised more than $141 billion as of July. It reported $16 billion in revenue in the first half of 2026—a 1,300% increase from the previous year—while posting a net loss of $81 billion over that period (with most of that reflecting an accounting adjustment tied to its financing deals). The company has more than 10,000 business and developer customers each contributing more than $100,000 in revenue.
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is an Anthropic backer, having often written checks worth up to $500,000 in startups that also include Anduril and Polymarket, according to The Profile.
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who has also invested in the Minnesota Timberwolves and Washington Commanders, participated in Anthropic’s Series A in 2021, according to data company PitchBook, when the company was valued at $461 million. His stake could be worth more than $10 billion in the coming weeks.
Other sports-related people and funds who have invested in Anthropic, according to PitchBook, include Bessemer Venture Partners (which has invested in TMRW Sports and Unrivaled), Lakeside Capital (Charlotte Hornets, Unrivaled, Venezia FC), Qatar Investment Authority (Monumental Sports & Entertainment), Seven Seven Six (Angel City FC, Athlos, Chelsea FC Women, LOVB, TMRW Sports), and Founders Fund (Enhanced Games). Former NBA player Tristan Thompson said in May that he invested in Anthropic after meeting with Silicon Valley veterans who discussed AI’s potential with him.
General Atlantic, the NFL’s private equity partner, got in on Anthropic’s 2025 Series F when the startup was valued at $183 billion. Daniel Sundheim’s (Charlotte Hornets) D1 Capital Partners, Marc Stad’s (Minnesota Timberwolves) Dragoneer Investment Group, and David Tepper’s (Carolina Panthers, Charlotte FC) Appaloosa Management are also among the more than 300 investors PitchBook has reported. It is unclear whether previous investors have held onto their stakes as the IPO nears.
Anthropic entered its first major sports partnership earlier this year, a multiyear tie-up with F1’s Williams Racing.
For sports owners who haven’t already invested in Anthropic’s corner of the AI boom, there’s still cause for optimism. Tech investors Joshua Kushner and Vinod Khosla both recently moved to acquire sports teams at record valuations, seeing a future in which AI’s continued growth will make the finite number of sports events and teams even more valuable.
“In a world of abundant intelligence, certain scarce human experiences may matter more,” Kushner wrote to Thrive Capital investors in August. “In a world of fragmented distribution, trusted institutions may matter more. In a world where content and software become easier to create, assets rooted in identity, culture, community, history and physical experience may become more valuable.”
Both Thrive Capital and Khosla Ventures have backed OpenAI, the other new AI giant, which previously explored its own IPO before raising a reported $30 billion.
—Kurt Badenhausen and Eben Novy-Williams contributed reporting