Forge insights

Late last month, The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI is laying the groundwork for a potential IPO in the fourth quarter of 2026, driven in part by internal concerns that rival Anthropic could reach the public markets first.1 If accurate, the dynamic is less about scale alone and more about timing, marking a race to persuade public-market investors that each company’s technology, go-to-market strategy and cost structure can withstand the rigor of quarterly reporting.