OpenAI reported $5.7 billion in revenue for the first quarter, according to individuals cited by The Information, placing it nearly $1 billion ahead of Anthropic for that period. The company’s top-line performance was supported by a combination of its coding agent Codex, enterprise sales efforts, and advertising experiments on ChatGPT.
While OpenAI led in Q1 revenue, Anthropic has been growing at a faster rate. Sources indicate Anthropic’s annualized revenue approached $45 billion, a figure that notably surpasses the $25 billion annualized run rate attributed to OpenAI in February.
Anthropic has provided an outlook for the second quarter, projecting that revenue will roughly double to nearly $11 billion and that it will record operating profit of $600 million. OpenAI has not publicly shared second-quarter projections, leaving a gap in comparable forward-looking figures for the two companies.
Both companies are making preparations that could lead to public listings, with plans under consideration to seek additional capital via initial public offerings as early as the fourth quarter of 2026. The timing of those potential IPOs remains subject to each company’s internal decisions and market conditions.
The divergent metrics in these reported figures highlight a contrast between current-period leadership and momentum. OpenAI’s first-quarter advantage reflects strong near-term receipts tied to specific product lines and commercial channels, while Anthropic’s larger annualized run rate and aggressive second-quarter projection point to a steeper growth trajectory in recent months.
For observers tracking these companies, the available information provides clear snapshots of performance but leaves unanswered questions where figures are not disclosed - notably OpenAI’s second-quarter outlook. The firms’ stated intentions to explore public offerings by late 2026 indicate both are positioning to access broader capital markets, though the timing and terms of any such transactions have not been detailed.
Clear summary: OpenAI led in first-quarter revenue with $5.7 billion, outpacing Anthropic by nearly $1 billion; Anthropic, however, has shown faster growth with an annualized revenue run rate near $45 billion versus OpenAI’s $25 billion in February. Anthropic forecasts Q2 revenue of nearly $11 billion and operating profit of $600 million. OpenAI has not disclosed Q2 projections. Both companies are preparing for potential IPOs as early as Q4 2026.