Anthropic’s on-chain pre-IPO market value jumps to $1.2 trillion, overtakes OpenAI for the first time

Anthropic's tokenized pre-IPO shares have reached a $1.2 trillion valuation on-chain markets, surpassing OpenAI for the first time despite the company's most recent Series G round in February 2026 valuing it at $380 billion. This divergence highlights how blockchain-based secondary markets are pricing in future growth expectations ahead of any potential public offering.

The emergence of tokenized pre-IPO markets represents a fundamental shift in how late-stage private companies are valued before going public. Anthropic's on-chain valuation reaching $1.2 trillion—more than three times its most recent institutional round valuation—demonstrates that decentralized markets are incorporating growth projections, competitive positioning, and AI market potential that traditional venture rounds may not fully capture. This pricing mechanism allows retail and institutional participants to express conviction about Anthropic's future without waiting for official IPO processes.

The broader context shows accelerating interest in AI infrastructure companies as foundational assets. OpenAI's previous market leadership in valuation metrics reflected its first-mover advantage and ChatGPT's consumer penetration, but Anthropic's technological progress, particularly in constitutional AI and model safety, has attracted significant institutional backing from GIC and Coatue. On-chain markets are front-running these developments, suggesting participants expect Anthropic to capture substantial value in the enterprise and government AI adoption cycles.

This dynamic creates several implications for the AI sector. Secondary markets are becoming price discovery mechanisms that bypass traditional gatekeeping, potentially accelerating capital allocation toward competing AI laboratories. For investors, tokenized shares offer liquidity before IPO lockups, though with corresponding regulatory uncertainty. The valuation gap between on-chain and traditional rounds indicates either irrational exuberance in secondary markets or significant underpricing in late-stage venture rounds—a discrepancy that will eventually resolve through official IPO pricing.

Monitoring Anthropic's path to public markets and actual IPO valuation will reveal whether these on-chain signals accurately predict future institutional pricing or represent speculative excess in blockchain-based trading.

• →Anthropic's tokenized pre-IPO valuation of $1.2T exceeds OpenAI, signaling strong market confidence in the company's competitive position.
• →On-chain markets are pricing AI infrastructure companies 3x higher than their most recent institutional funding rounds, suggesting significant growth expectations.
• →Secondary tokenized markets are functioning as early price discovery mechanisms for late-stage AI companies before traditional IPO processes.
• →The valuation discrepancy between blockchain and venture rounds indicates either market mispricing or significant undervaluation in traditional funding.
• →Anthropic's surge reflects broader investor conviction in constitutional AI and enterprise/government adoption trends, not just hype.