Anthropic and OpenAI are pursuing a combined $111 billion in fresh funding as political opposition to artificial intelligence grows in the United States.

According to information shared by Coin Bureau on X, Anthropic is pressing ahead with plans for an initial public offering before Thanksgiving that could raise up to $100 billion, while OpenAI has closed $11 billion of its funding round.

The fundraising activity comes as proposed restrictions on advanced AI systems and data center development gain attention among US political figures. The developments highlight a contrast between the scale of capital being pursued by major AI companies and the regulatory pressure emerging around the industry.

Anthropic Targets Up to $100 Billion Through IPO

Anthropic, the developer of the Claude AI assistant, is moving forward with plans for an IPO before Thanksgiving, with the offering potentially raising as much as $100 billion. The Thanksgiving holiday falls in late November, placing any listing under that timeline within a matter of weeks. A debut of that size would rank among the largest public offerings on record. That compressed window sets a concrete near-term date to watch as the offering plans and the political debate over AI advance side by side.

The proposed amount represents the larger share of the $111 billion in combined funding activity involving Anthropic and OpenAI cited by Coin Bureau. OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has closed $11 billion of its funding round through a separate, private route.

Taken together, the figures put the two companies' reported fundraising activity at up to $111 billion, although the amounts involve different financing mechanisms: a planned public offering for Anthropic and a funding round for OpenAI. The plans are proceeding amid a political debate over the development and deployment of increasingly advanced AI systems in the United States, a debate spanning proposed legislative measures and state-level executive action.

Proposed AI Restrictions Add Political Pressure

One proposal cited by Coin Bureau calls for a "day 1" ban on AI superintelligence. Violators could face prison sentences of up to 20 years under the proposed measure. The term superintelligence generally refers to AI systems that would surpass human capabilities across most cognitive tasks. Because it is framed as a proposal, the measure would need to advance through the legislative process before taking effect, making its progress one of the near-term developments to follow alongside the companies' fundraising timelines.

The political debate also extends to the infrastructure required to support AI development. Gina Hinojosa, the incoming Democratic governor of Texas, has vowed to pause AI data centers, according to the information shared by Coin Bureau. Texas has been among the most active US states for data center construction in recent years.

Data center development has become a significant part of the wider AI debate, as companies pursue the computing infrastructure needed to train and operate their systems. A proposed pause in Texas would put the state's data center development plans under political scrutiny.

Goldman Sachs Warns of Potential Data Center Restrictions

Financial-sector estimates cited in the report point to the possible scale of the infrastructure challenge. Goldman Sachs estimates that about 45% of planned data center capacity in the United States faces possible restrictions.

The estimate concerns planned US data center capacity that could encounter restrictions; it does not state that 45% of existing facilities are already subject to a ban. It nevertheless adds a significant infrastructure dimension to the political debate surrounding AI expansion.

Capital Plans Take Shape Under Regulatory Scrutiny

Anthropic's proposed IPO target of up to $100 billion and OpenAI's $11 billion funding round come as proposals affecting AI superintelligence and data center development continue to emerge. The Goldman Sachs estimate puts the share of planned US data center capacity potentially facing restrictions at about 45%, adding an infrastructure dimension to a debate that now spans advanced AI models and the physical facilities that support them.

Source: Hokanews, reported by Victoria Hale.