2026 IPO Watch: Five companies signal their potential IPO intent
A group of high-profile private companies spanning AI, crypto infrastructure, analytics and space has either signaled intentions to go public or made strategic leadership and financing moves that suggest IPO preparation.
Below, we highlight five such Forge-listed companies that investors may want to watch, as their public debuts could materialize by year’s end.
Anthropic, an AI research firm
San Francisco-based Anthropic is one private AI companies that may potentially.1 In February, the company appointed Chris Liddell to its board, a former Microsoft and General Motors CFO with deep public-company and governance experience.2,3
Founded in 2021, Anthropic has recently introduced major innovations to its Claude suite of products, including features that allow users to send commands directly from a smartphone and enable more autonomous completion of computer-based tasks.4
The company’s Forge Price™ is $259.14 as of March 25, 2026, implying a valuation of $380.01 billion. Notable investors include Coatue Management, Blackstone, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Google.
Anthropic is also recognized as one of Forge’s Private Magnificent 7 companies.
OpenAI, a generative AI company
San Francisco-based OpenAI has signaled IPO intent through executive commentary. In October, CEO Sam Altman stated.5 Reuters further reported that individuals familiar with the matter believe an IPO could occur by the end of the year, potentially at a $1 trillion valuation — positioning it as one of the largest IPOs ever.
Founded in 2015, OpenAI is widely considered one of the most valuable private companies in the world.6 The company has recently been described as “orienting aggressively” toward products that deliver high-efficiency computing solutions for enterprises, while its generative AI platform now serves approximately 900 million users globally.7
OpenAI’s Forge Price™ as of March 25, 2026, is $728.71, implying a valuation of $840 billion. Its venture capital investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Thrive Capital, Sequoia Capital and K2 Global.
OpenAI is also listed as one of Forge’s Private Magnificent 7 companies.
SpaceX, an aerospace company
Starbase, Texas-based SpaceX appears to be a likely potential IPO by year’s end. In December, Bloomberg reported that the company was preparing for a possible 2026 offering, targeting a valuation of around $1.5.8 More recently, The Information reported SpaceX aims to file a prospectus within weeks with a target public debut timeframe9 June.10
Founded in 2002, SpaceX has continued to expand its ambitions, most notably through its reported acquisition of Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI. With a combined valuation of approximately $1.25 trillion, the transaction stands as one of the most ambitious M&A deals of the year and underscores SpaceX’s strategy of developing orbital data centers to support next-generation AI workloads.11
SpaceX’s Forge Price™ is $598.59 as of March 25, 2026, implying a valuation of $1.42 trillion. Its investors include Fidelity Investments, The Founders Fund, Valor Equity Partners and Alphabet.
SpaceX is also listed as one of Forge’s Private Magnificent 7 companies.
Lambda, a cloud services company
San Francisco-based Lambda has been making some moves that put it closer to a potential IPO. Earlier this year, it was reported that the company was seeking to raise up to $350 million as part of a financing push ahead of a potential public listing. The round was structured as convertible notes, with terms that would require Lambda to pay additional cash and interest if it does not go public by the end of the year.12
Founded in 2012, Lambda competes with major cloud providers such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft and Google by offering specialized computing services for AI developers. According to The Information, the company generated more than $520 million in revenue between October 2024 and September 2025. In February, Lambda also announced the appointment of a new CFO, Charles Fisher, who previously held executive roles at Turo and Charter Communications.13
Lambda’s Forge Price™ as of March 25, 2026, is $52.33, implying a valuation of $9.57 billion. The firm’s investors include TWG Global, Gradient Ventures, 1517 Fund and G Squared.
Dataiku, a data science platform
In October, it was reported that New York City-based Dataiku had had hired Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and other banks to advance an IPO that could come as early as the first half of 2026.14
Founded in 2013, Dataiku is a data science and machine learning platform that provides enterprises with tools to build and deploy AI models at scale. According to Reuters, the company serves more than 700 clients, including Johnson & Johnson, Toyota and General Electric. Dataiku also reportedly surpassed $300 million in annual recurring revenue, reflecting continued enterprise adoption.
As of its latest funding round in August 2021, Dataiku’s last price per share was $25.09, implying a post-money valuation of $4.6 billion. Its investors include Tiger Global, ICONIQ, CapitalG and Battery Ventures.
