E225: Anthropic secures $183B valuation funding milestone; Revolut achieves $75B valuation share sale; OpenAI expands tender from $6B to $10.3B; OpenAI completes $1.1B Statsig acquisition; OpenAI launches proprietary AI chip development initiative; Lambda
E225: Anthropic secures $183B valuation funding milestone; Revolut achieves $75B valuation share sale; OpenAI expands tender from $6B to $10.3B; OpenAI completes $1.1B Statsig acquisition; OpenAI launches proprietary AI chip development initiative; Lambda
Podcast11 min 42 sec
Listen to Episode
Note: AI-generated summary based on third-party content. Not financial advice. Read more.
Quick Insights

Fintech company Klarna is planning a U.S. IPO, aiming to raise up to $1.27 billion by offering shares between $35 and $37. Crypto exchange Gemini is also preparing a NASDAQ IPO under the ticker GEMI with a price range of $17 to $19, but investors should be cautious due to its unprofitability. OpenAI's strategic move to develop its own AI chips, with mass production planned for 2026, presents a significant long-term risk to NVIDIA's (NVDA) market dominance. Investors should watch for the IPO of AI infrastructure provider Lambda Labs, a key supplier to NVIDIA and Microsoft, which is expected as early as the first half of 2026. For accredited investors, AG Dillon & Co is offering pre-IPO access to high-profile AI companies like XAI and Lambda Labs through single-stock funds until September 26, 2025.

Detailed Analysis

AG Dillon & Co Pre-IPO Funds

  • The firm is closing six single-stock pre-IPO funds on September 26, 2025.
  • These funds offer exposure to the following private companies:
    • Andrel
    • XAI
    • Grok
    • Lambda Labs
    • Together AI
    • An unnamed space economy company
  • The funds are available for purchase at Charles Schwab, Fidelity, and directly from AG Dillon Funds.
  • The investment minimum is $2,500 and is available for financial advisors only.

Takeaways

  • This is a direct opportunity for accredited investors (via their financial advisors) to gain exposure to a curated list of high-profile, private technology and AI companies before they potentially go public.
  • The single-stock fund structure allows investors to build a custom portfolio of pre-IPO companies, rather than investing in a broad, diversified fund.

Anthropic

  • An AI large language model (LLM) company that just completed a $13 billion funding round at a $183 billion post-money valuation.
  • This new valuation nearly triples its previous one, with major investors including Iconic Capital, Fidelity, and Lightspeed Venture Partners.
  • The company has demonstrated historic growth, with its revenue run rate growing from $1 billion at the start of 2025 to over $5 billion by August 2025.

Takeaways

  • Anthropic is positioned as one of the top players in the AI space, with staggering revenue growth and immense confidence from major institutional investors.
  • For pre-IPO investors, the company represents a key competitor to OpenAI, but its $183 billion valuation is extremely high, reflecting massive future growth expectations that are already priced in.

Revolut

  • A fintech company that launched a secondary share sale at a $75 billion valuation, allowing existing shareholders to sell shares.
  • The company is also buying back up to 10% of its own shares in a tender offer, a move designed to provide liquidity to early investors and allow the company to remain private longer.
  • Business is growing steadily, with active customers up 35% year-over-year to a total of 35 million.

Takeaways

  • Revolut is a mature, large-scale fintech company that is not rushing to go public.
  • The share sale and tender offer provide a way for early investors and employees to cash out without an IPO. The strong customer growth indicates a healthy underlying business.

OpenAI

  • The leading AI LLM company expanded its tender offer (allowing employees and early investors to sell shares) to $10.3 billion at a massive $500 billion valuation.
  • The business is experiencing explosive growth:
    • ChatGPT has 800 million weekly active users.
    • Annual revenue is projected at $12 billion for 2025, having doubled in just seven months.
  • OpenAI is actively acquiring companies to bolster its platform, including product testing startup Statsig for $1.1 billion.
  • The company is making a major strategic move to develop its own proprietary AI chips in partnership with Broadcom, aiming to challenge NVIDIA's dominance and reduce its own costs.
    • The goal is to begin mass production in 2026.
    • Analysts predict this could capture 15% of the AI chip market by 2030.

Takeaways

  • OpenAI continues to solidify its position as the market leader in AI, with incredible user and revenue metrics.
  • The move into designing its own chips is a significant long-term strategy. If successful, it could dramatically improve OpenAI's profitability and create a new, powerful competitor in the semiconductor industry, posing a long-term risk to NVIDIA.
  • The $500 billion valuation in the private market makes it one of the most valuable companies in the world.

NVIDIA (NVDA)

  • The company's dominance in the AI chip market is being directly challenged by its largest customer, OpenAI, which is developing its own chips.
    • OpenAI previously spent $7 billion annually on NVIDIA GPUs.
  • In a unique deal, NVIDIA has agreed to lease back 18,000 of its own AI chips from its customer, Lambda Labs, for $1.5 billion over four years.

Takeaways

  • Bullish Case: The deal with Lambda Labs shows that demand for NVIDIA's chips is so high that it is now a customer of its own customer, highlighting the current supply crunch and the critical importance of its hardware.
  • Bearish Case: The move by OpenAI to develop its own chips represents a significant long-term risk. If other major AI companies follow suit, it could erode NVIDIA's market share over time.

Lambda Labs

  • An AI GPU cloud provider that is preparing for a U.S. IPO as early as the first half of 2026.
  • The company is currently raising $1 billion in a private funding round at a $6 billion valuation.
  • It has a major deal to lease 18,000 NVIDIA AI chips back to NVIDIA itself, indicating its crucial role in the AI hardware ecosystem.
  • Other major customers include Amazon and Microsoft.

Takeaways

  • Lambda Labs is a "picks and shovels" investment in the AI boom, providing the essential computing power that AI companies need.
  • The upcoming IPO in 2026 is one for investors to watch. The company's strong customer base (including NVIDIA, Amazon, Microsoft) provides significant validation of its business model.

Klarna

  • The "Buy Now, Pay Later" fintech company is planning a U.S. IPO.
  • It aims to raise up to $1.27 billion by offering shares in a price range of $35 to $37 each.
  • This pricing would give Klarna a potential market value of $14 billion.
  • The company is showing positive financial momentum heading into its IPO:
    • Revenue grew 20% year-over-year.
    • It has achieved adjusted operating profit.
    • Active customers surged 31% to 111 million.

Takeaways

  • Klarna presents a near-term opportunity for public market investors to buy into a well-known fintech brand.
  • Unlike many high-growth tech companies, Klarna is demonstrating a combination of strong growth and profitability, which could make it an attractive IPO for investors. The $14 billion valuation provides a clear benchmark for the public offering.

Gemini (GEMI)

  • The cryptocurrency exchange is preparing for a NASDAQ IPO under the ticker GEMI.
  • The company plans to offer shares in a range of $17 to $19, aiming for a market capitalization of $2.1 billion.
  • Financial performance shows significant challenges:
    • The company reported a $282 million net loss in the first half of 2025 on $68.6 million in revenue.
    • Its lifetime trading volume is $285 billion, which is less than its competitor Coinbase processed in a single quarter.

Takeaways

  • The IPO offers another way for public investors to gain exposure to the crypto industry beyond Coinbase (COIN).
  • Investors should be cautious. The company is unprofitable and its trading volumes are significantly smaller than its main public competitor, suggesting it is a smaller player in a competitive market.

SpaceX

  • The private space company received FAA approval to more than double its annual launch limit from Florida to 120 launches per year.
  • This follows a rapid increase in launch activity, from 60 launches in 2022 to 132 in 2024.
  • The company's valuation in the secondary (private) market stands at $404 billion.

Takeaways

  • SpaceX continues to strengthen its monopoly on the space launch market, with regulatory approvals paving the way for even more rapid expansion.
  • As a private company, direct investment is limited, but its massive valuation reflects its dominant and growing position in the space economy.

Other AI & Tech Opportunities

  • Mistral AI: A European AI competitor that is reportedly raising funds at a $14 billion valuation, more than double its previous mark. It focuses on open-source models, which could be a key differentiator.
  • Sierra: A customer service AI company founded by the current OpenAI chairman. It recently doubled its valuation to $10 billion and is showing rapid customer adoption from companies like SoFi and Ramp.
  • Open Evidence: An AI chatbot for doctors that is being used by 40% of U.S. physicians. It is evaluating new investment offers at a $6 billion valuation, highlighting rapid growth in the specialized field of medical AI.
  • Pinecone: A cautionary story. This AI database startup is exploring a sale due to intense competition from giants like Amazon Web Services. This shows how quickly the AI landscape can change and how smaller, specialized players can be threatened by big tech.
  • AnySphere: An AI coding assistant whose user data is attracting acquisition interest from OpenAI, XAI, and Anthropic. This highlights that in the world of AI, proprietary data can be an extremely valuable asset in itself.
Ask about this postAnswers are grounded in this post's content.
Episode Description
Send us a text 00:00 - Intro 00:54 - Anthropic Secures $183B Valuation Funding Milestone 01:32 - Revolut Achieves $75B Valuation Share Sale 02:10 - OpenAI Expands Tender from $6B to $10.3B 03:07 - OpenAI Completes $1.1B Statsig Acquisition 04:00 - OpenAI Launches Proprietary AI Chip Development Initiative 04:47 - Lambda $6B Round + IPO Preparation with Nvidia Partnership 05:24 - Mistral Drives $14B Valuation 06:05 - Sierra Captures $10B Valuation 06:57 - OpenEvidence Achieves $6B Valuation 07:29 - Pinecone Considers Sale Amid Market Shifts 07:59 - Klarna Targets $14B Valuation IPO 08:52 - Gemini Pursues $2.1B Valuation IPO 09:49 - SpaceX Wins 120 Annual Launches in Florida Base 10:33 - Anysphere (Cursor) Explores Data Licensing Deals
About This Week in Pre-IPO Stocks
This Week in Pre-IPO Stocks

This Week in Pre-IPO Stocks

By AG Dillon & Co

This Week in Pre-IPO Stocks reports on pre-IPO stock research, trends, trading, and venture capital funds. Visit www.agdillon.com for more.