Anthropic is preparing to warn prospective shareholders that public resistance to artificial intelligence could threaten its rapid expansion, according to people familiar with the process who spoke to CNBC. The company's upcoming IPO prospectus is expected to identify negative views toward AI and opposition to data center construction as business risks.

The disclosure comes as concern grows over job losses, electricity demand, water use, and development near local communities. Anthropic confidentially filed for an offering in June, and its public documents could be released within weeks. The Claude developer enters the process with a private valuation near $1 trillion, while investor expectations have placed a possible public-market valuation near $2 trillion. The company was founded in 2021 by former OpenAI research leaders Dario and Daniela Amodei, and its filing will offer the fullest public look yet at the finances behind one of the most closely watched AI startups.

Anthropic IPO Faces Growing Backlash Over AI Data Centers

The Anthropic IPO process includes preliminary meetings with bankers and investors, a standard part of the preparation for a public listing. These private sessions allow companies to gauge demand before formally marketing shares. Chief Financial Officer Krishna Rao has faced questions about competition, open-source models, margin pressure, and slower infrastructure construction.

LATEST: Anthropic's upcoming IPO prospectus will list public backlash against AI and data centers as a risk factor, per CNBC. pic.twitter.com/hGuZwzoyHZ — CoinMarketCap (@CoinMarketCap) August 22, 2026

LATEST: Anthropic's upcoming IPO prospectus will list public backlash against AI and data centers as a risk factor, per CNBC. pic.twitter.com/hGuZwzoyHZ — CoinMarketCap (@CoinMarketCap) August 22, 2026

The backlash against AI creates a direct commercial risk for Anthropic. The company and other leading AI laboratories need substantial computing capacity to train models and serve customers. Any delay in building AI data centers could limit available computing resources, slow product delivery, or increase operating costs.

Public resistance has become harder for developers to ignore. A Gallup survey published in May found that seven in ten Americans opposed AI data centers near their communities. Half of respondents strongly opposed them, while roughly one quarter supported local construction.

The issue has also become part of the political debate ahead of the midterm elections. Florida Representative Byron Donalds proposed restrictions on data center projects during his successful Republican gubernatorial primary campaign. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro separately signed an executive order imposing strict development standards.

Those actions could lead to different rules across states. Developers may face longer permitting reviews, tighter environmental conditions, or limits on electricity and water use. Such measures could slow the infrastructure pipeline supporting Anthropic's services, even as customer demand continues to rise.

Investors Test Valuation, Margins and Infrastructure Risks

Anthropic's IPO could become one of the largest offerings ever completed. People involved in the discussions expect a potential valuation near $2 trillion, which would be roughly double the company's reported private-market value and increase scrutiny of its growth assumptions.

The financial case for the offering rests in part on a $65 billion annualized revenue run rate, as previously reported. Investors are weighing that growth against the high costs of chips, power, facilities, and cloud agreements. They are also examining whether cheaper open-source models could compress prices and margins.

Infrastructure remains central to that calculation. Major technology companies are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on new facilities and graphics processors, and Anthropic relies on partners to expand capacity quickly enough for demanding models and services. Among those partners are Amazon and Google, which have each made multibillion-dollar investments in Anthropic and offer Claude through their cloud platforms, linking the company's capital base directly to its computing suppliers. The expected ownership details in the filing will show how those relationships are structured.

For Anthropic, a construction slowdown would create more than a political issue. Less computing capacity could restrain revenue, delay deployments, and intensify competition for available hardware. Local opposition could also raise costs through litigation, redesigned sites, and community commitments.

Under US securities rules, registration statements must describe the most significant risks facing a company. Risk disclosures do not predict that an event will occur. Public companies use them to explain material threats and reduce legal exposure. SpaceX, which completed a record $85.7 billion offering including its underwriter option, listed macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions among its own risks.

The language in Anthropic's filing would place social acceptance alongside financial and competitive concerns. Prospective shareholders will assess whether revenue can continue scaling while infrastructure partners navigate local resistance, and whether a $2 trillion valuation leaves room for regulatory delays. Rising development costs and changing attitudes toward AI add further risk.

Anthropic declined to comment on the meetings or expected prospectus language. Its filing is expected to provide investors with financial details, offering terms, and ownership information, along with a description of the risks surrounding its expansion plans and public debut.