Bill Ackman Declines Anthropic Investment Despite Calling It 'Greatest Business Story'

TLDR

Table of Contents

Bill Ackman described Anthropic as “perhaps the greatest business story” in his career.
Despite his admiration, Pershing Square will not invest in the AI startup.
The company saw revenue multiply twelve-fold to approximately $4.6 billion in 2025.
Net losses for 2025 totaled a staggering $42 billion.
The AI firm seeks a $2 trillion market cap for its upcoming public offering.

Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman shared his perspective on AI startup Anthropic in a Wednesday interview with Bloomberg TV. The billionaire characterized the company’s trajectory as among the most impressive business developments he has witnessed.

Bill Ackman says Anthropic is perhaps the greatest business story he's ever seen and he's less likely to own it
[ Dani: What do you make of an IPO with that sort of thing in it? And is that a company you would even buy? ]
"So I think Anthropic, it's perhaps the greatest… https://t.co/17c2WBfo6U pic.twitter.com/oRJQ8GTM5t

— CEOInterviews.AI (@CEOinterview) September 30, 2026

Despite offering high praise, Ackman confirmed that Pershing Square, the investment firm he manages, will almost certainly not take a position in Anthropic.

“Anthropic is perhaps the greatest business story I’ve ever seen,” Ackman stated, highlighting the firm’s revenue expansion and Claude AI product as key factors driving his assessment.

The Rationale Behind Passing on Investment

Ackman outlined his fund’s investment philosophy, which centers on businesses with foreseeable and stable financial trajectories. He cited holdings such as Microsoft, S&P Global, Visa, and Mastercard as representative of Pershing Square’s preferred investment profile.

The investor emphasized that his firm steers clear of rapidly expanding enterprises that consume substantial capital. He characterized such investments as wagering that eventual profitability will justify present expenditures.

Additionally, Ackman voiced skepticism about the sustainability of competitive advantages among premier AI companies. He referenced open source and open weight model alternatives as potentially viable competitors that could erode market dominance over time.

These concerns emerge as Anthropic advances toward its anticipated initial public offering scheduled for later this year. The company has yet to file official documents with regulators.

Reuters published a report this week revealing information from a confidential filing that was leaked. The document illustrated dramatic revenue expansion coupled with substantial financial losses.

Financial Performance Metrics

Based on the leaked documentation, Anthropic’s 2025 revenue experienced a twelve-fold increase compared to the previous year. The figure approached $4.6 billion in total.

Simultaneously, the company recorded escalating net losses. These deficits reached $42 billion throughout 2025.

Notwithstanding these losses, Anthropic targets a $2 trillion market capitalization upon going public. This valuation would position it among the highest-valued companies in stock market history.

Market participants will require assurance that future revenue generation can surpass ongoing expenditures. Financial analysts have already expressed skepticism about whether this economic model proves viable.

Competitor OpenAI is similarly expected to pursue public markets eventually. Both organizations confront comparable investor scrutiny regarding their spending-to-revenue ratios.

Ackman’s stance does not indicate a complete withdrawal from artificial intelligence investments. His fund maintains significant positions in major technology companies benefiting from AI advancement.

Public filings from August reveal Pershing Square holds equity stakes in Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft. These investments demonstrate Ackman’s strategy of accessing AI exposure through mature, established corporations rather than emerging startups.

During the interview, Ackman refrained from advocating for additional regulatory oversight of large-scale AI enterprises. His remarks concentrated primarily on investment criteria rather than policy considerations.

The conversation contributes to broader debates surrounding appropriate valuation methodologies for AI companies approaching public markets. Anthropic’s forthcoming IPO is anticipated to attract significant attention from institutional and retail investors alike.

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