The age of AI as a private club is ending

OpenAI, Anthropic, and SpaceX are all preparing for potential IPOs this year. If you don’t follow tech markets, that might not sound like news.

But all three going public in the same window, at combined valuations in the trillions, represents something bigger than just stock listings.

For context, Saudi aramco’s roughly 29 billion IPO in 2019 was the largest in history.

For the first time since the original internet boom, a new wave of genuinely transformative technology companies is becoming accessible to regular public‑market investors instead of staying locked up in private hands.

OpenAI has been around since 2015, funded by venture capital and massive strategic investment from Microsoft and more recently Softbank. Most people couldn’t invest even if they wanted to. Going public changes that.

But there’s a more interesting shift happening. Private companies can operate with limited disclosure, burn cash for years, and postpone hard questions about profitability. Public companies face quarterly scrutiny, have to explain their strategies to analysts, and eventually need to show they can make money. 

That discipline is a forcing function.

Consider that SpaceX has Starlink subscription revenue and government contracts. Anthropic focuses on enterprises willing to pay premium prices for reliable, safety‑oriented AI systems. OpenAI has consumer‑level scale.

All three need capital for different reasons, but they’re all choosing to tap public markets in the same era.

The timing matters. Figma’s blockbuster IPO last summer was massively oversubscribed and widely seen as opening the floodgates for large tech listings.

So, the questions are:

1/ Are these companies mature enough to handle public markets?

2/ What happens when the companies building AI infrastructure have to operate with transparency and prove their business models work?

3/ What approaches will create value beyond the hype?

Ultimately my hope is we get better products, clearer strategies, and broader public participation in the upside.

The age of AI as a private club is ending. What comes next should be more interesting.

_______

Sources:

The Wall Street Journal: https://lnkd.in/gQhUvJhc

The New York Times: https://lnkd.in/g8fGpMn3

Barron's: https://lnkd.in/gP4s-bWj?

LinkedIn News: https://lnkd.in/gm7ESvWD

— 

Ram Srinivasan MIT Alum | Author, The Conscious Machine | Global Future of Work and AI Adoption Leader published in Business Insider, Fortune, Harvard Business Review, MIT Executive Viewpoints and more.

—

A Message From Ram:

My mission is to illuminate the path toward humanity's exponential future. If you're a leader, innovator, or changemaker passionate about leveraging breakthrough technologies to create unprecedented positive impact, you're in the right place. If you know others who share this vision, please share these insights. Together, we can accelerate the trajectory of human progress.

Disclaimer:

Ram Srinivasan currently serves as an Innovation Strategist and Transformation Leader, authoring groundbreaking works including "The Conscious Machine" and the upcoming "The Exponential Human."

All views expressed on "Substrate" and across all digital channels and social media platforms are strictly personal opinions and do not represent the official positions of any organizations or entities I am affiliated with, past or present. The content shared is for informational and inspirational purposes only. These perspectives are my own and should not be construed as professional, legal, financial, technical, or strategic advice. Any decisions made based on this information are solely the responsibility of the reader.

While I strive to ensure accuracy and timeliness in all communications, the rapid pace of technological change means that some information may become outdated. I encourage readers to conduct their own due diligence and seek appropriate professional advice for their specific circumstances.