OpenAI generated approximately $5.7 billion in revenue during the first quarter of 2026, giving it a roughly $1 billion lead over rival Anthropic, according to a report by The Information.
The report added that OpenAI’s quarterly revenue growth was driven by expanding enterprise adoption of ChatGPT, growing demand for its developer tools and rapid uptake of Codex, the company’s AI coding platform.
Despite trailing OpenAI in quarterly revenue, Anthropic is seeing rapid growth of its own. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Anthropic generated about $4.8 billion in first-quarter revenue and is projecting that figure to more than double to roughly $10.9 billion in the second quarter, potentially putting the company on track for its first quarterly operating profit, estimated at $559 million.
The sharp rise has been fuelled largely by enterprise demand for Claude models, particularly among software developers, financial institutions and large corporate customers adopting AI tools internally.
At the same time, OpenAI is aggressively scaling its business ahead of a widely anticipated IPO filing. The company is currently generating around $25 billion in annualised recurring revenue, according to The Information. However, its spending commitments remain substantial due to investments in AI chips, data centres and model development.
Anthropic, meanwhile, in April said that its annualised revenue run rate crossed $30 billion in 2026, a dramatic increase from about $9 billion at the end of 2025.
The company has benefited from strong demand for coding-related AI products and strategic partnerships with major cloud providers, including Amazon and Google, both of which have invested billions of dollars into the startup.
Both OpenAI and Anthropic are planning to go public this year. OpenAI is reportedly working with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley on an IPO that could be filed within days or weeks, targeting a September debut on public markets.
Anthropic is reportedly exploring an IPO that could happen as early as October 2026, with some bankers expecting the offering to raise more than $60 billion. Separately, reports citing The New York Times said Anthropic has discussed fundraising at valuations approaching $950 billion, potentially surpassing OpenAI’s latest reported valuation of $852 billion.
Your reaction
Discussion
What's your take on this story?
No comments yet — be the first to share your view.