Anthropic faces cloud capacity shortages ahead of potential November IPO

A leaked S1 filing indicates Anthropic is struggling to secure sufficient cloud capacity from AWS, Google, and Microsoft, with Microsoft increasingly viewing Anthropic as a competitor. The filing suggests Anthropic could spend more than $750 billion on cloud contracts, some of which are still in negotiation. To mitigate scarcity, the company is leasing its own data centers and working with third-party operators, though it worries these operators have limited operating history. Anthropic reported an $80.7 billion net loss in the first half of the year against $16.3 billion in revenue, with two customers accounting for about a fifth of sales. The filing warns of potential liability for damages caused by harmful AI behavior exceeding available insurance coverage.

Last week, the company told prospective investors that third-quarter revenue reached $16.8 billion, up 45% from the previous quarter. Anthropic is reportedly targeting a November IPO. The company is leasing its own data centers and working with third-party data center operators. However, the firm worries those operators have a limited operating history, which could make them less reliable than the hyperscalers.