The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq opened higher on Tuesday as retreating oil prices and fresh details of Anthropic's blockbuster public offering reignited appetite for technology stocks. The S&P 500 rose 15.9 points, or 0.21%, to 7,699.6 at the open, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 84.22 points, or 0.31%, to 26,904.60; the Dow slipped 64.6 points to 51,416.96, Reuters reported.
The filing behind the buzz is striking: Anthropic's IPO prospectus devotes 80 pages to the risks of AI - nearly double the 48 pages on its business plans - while targeting a $2 trillion valuation. The documents also reveal a $42 billion net loss in 2025 and a staggering $518 billion earmarked for cloud, computing and infrastructure spending in the coming year, CNBC reported.
The $2 trillion math
If it prices above $2 trillion, Anthropic would top SpaceX's $1.77 trillion June debut as the most valuable listing ever, seeking up to $100 billion - also a record. The $42 billion loss needs context: roughly $34 billion is an accounting charge on financing that may convert into shares, not cash burned running the business. Still, nearly a quarter of revenue came from just two customers, most big clients lack long-term contracts, and cash stood at $20.28 billion at year-end, Yahoo Finance reported.
Timing has slipped a month, from October to November, but the delay comes with a sweeter setup: annualized revenue is now expected to top $110 billion by year-end, up from a $65 billion run rate in July, compressing the IPO multiple toward 18 times sales. Morgan Stanley is reported as lead bank for a Nasdaq listing, with Nvidia discussing up to $10 billion as an anchor investor, The Motley Fool reported.
Tech leads the relief rally
The market had room to bounce. Monday saw the Dow shed over 300 points with the S&P 500 down 0.8% and the Nasdaq off 0.9% as surging crude and yields crushed sentiment. Tuesday's relief was led by chips and mega-caps: AMD climbed 1% after announcing its acquisition of AI firm World Labs, Nvidia - fresh off its own record $150 billion buyback - rose 0.7%, and Meta added 1.1%, Quartz reported.
What could still break it
The rally rests on two fragile pillars: oil staying down and yields behaving. Brent remains near crisis levels with the US-Iran standoff unresolved, and the 30-year Treasury just touched a 24-year high. If either leg wobbles, today's IPO euphoria could fade fast - but for now, a $2 trillion coming-out party is papering over a lot of fear.