Anthropic, a leading name in the artificial intelligence space, has recently taken decisive steps toward going public, an event that could reshape the technology sector in the years ahead. As a female entrepreneur focused on bootstrapping startups, I always keep a close eye on major developments that could set trends for smaller companies and independent founders. While it may seem like a distant dream for most European entrepreneurs, the lessons from Anthropic’s progress toward an IPO can be incredibly revealing, no matter the scale of your business.
Let’s break down the core details, the lessons we can take from this journey, and how these insights can be applied, especially for female entrepreneurs navigating startup challenges in Europe.
What Is Happening With Anthropic?
In preparation for a public offering that could occur in 2026, Anthropic, the AI company recognized for its Claude chatbot, has engaged Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a reputable law firm in Silicon Valley. When a firm valued at over $300 billion starts laying the groundwork for an IPO, it isn’t just a move for capital, it’s a clear indication of its intentions to establish itself as a long-term industry leader.
The tech press and platforms like TechCrunch's report on Anthropic's IPO progress have detailed the firm's upcoming fundraising plans. Recently, Anthropic raised $13 billion in funding at a valuation of $183 billion, and it is now seeking to bolster that number to beyond $300 billion. Meanwhile, OpenAI, its closest rival, is awaiting its own turn in the public market limelight, potentially shooting for an even higher valuation. The race is on, and the stakes are colossal.
What Does This Mean for Entrepreneurs?
For founders like myself and others in the European startup ecosystem, these announcements may seem far removed from our day-to-day challenges. Yet dig a little deeper, and you'll notice parallels worth exploring. Startups working toward milestones, whether those are funding rounds or substantial product launches, face challenges that are remarkably similar, just on a different scale.
Here are some clear takeaways:
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Long-Term Vision is Essential
Anthropic started hiring experts like Wilson Sonsini years in advance to prepare for this IPO. Similarly, your long-term success depends on planning ahead, not reacting to immediate needs. Do you envision where your company might stand in five or even ten years? For early-stage entrepreneurs, this might mean laying out milestones for consistent growth while aligning your goals with market demand. -
Strong Founding Teams Pay Off
Consistency in leadership has been a cornerstone of hub companies like Anthropic, whose founding team includes former OpenAI executives. Partnerships within a founding team matter, so align with co-founders who complement your skills. As women entrepreneurs, we sometimes feel the need to prove that we can handle everything on our own, but collaboration is key in the long run. -
Master Your Market Shift
Anthropic identified and capitalized on the growing interest in generative AI. Every business, no matter its size or early struggles, develops a sense of market trends over time. Don’t ignore changes in your industry. For example, if you’re in e-commerce or SaaS, customers now expect tailored experiences, how can AI or other new tools support that? -
Invest in Preparation for Growth
IPO readiness doesn’t materialize overnight. Anthropic began checking the boxes on compliance, governance processes, and operational improvements years in advance. Their investment in legal and financial expertise is something that many smaller companies frequently overlook. Whether you’re just dealing with early contracts or setting up financial forecasts, getting professional advice (even basic external bookkeeping for small setups) can save unnecessary stress later.
A How-To Guide for European Founders Thinking Big
So how can entrepreneurs integrate some of these strategies for their own companies? Let’s break it down into actionable steps:
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Set Milestones Early On
Planning is not reserved for billion-dollar companies. Use business planning tools such as the Fe/male Switch Startup Game’s Business Model Canvas, specifically designed to guide women in strategic thinking about their startups. Strategic clarity at any scale saves time. -
Focus Fundraising on a Clear Narrative
No successful funding round happens without a compelling story. Why should people believe in you and your mission? Anthropic tells a story about building responsible, safe AI and getting ahead of bigger rivals like OpenAI. What story do you tell your investors or customers? -
Broaden Your Skillset
Anthropic’s leadership team didn’t achieve this alone, they surrounded themselves with specialists in law, finance, and strategy. Take inspiration from entrepreneurship programs like Fe/male Switch, which encourage women founders to expand their understanding of intellectual property, finance, and game design. -
Continually Adapt to Market Demands
Anthropic's decision to build large language models and prioritize enterprise customers reflects its ability to adapt over time. Similarly, reassess your strategy every quarter or introduce customer feedback mechanisms to stay relevant.
Common Mistakes That Anthropic Didn’t Make, But Smaller Startups Do
Mistakes are inevitable, but recognizing frequent pitfalls can help combat setbacks. Across my years running startups, here’s what I’ve noticed:
- Failure to Test Products at the Right Scale: You may focus so much on small-scale feedback that when your product finds broader traction, it suddenly doesn’t work. Learn from Anthropic’s method of starting with enterprise markets and scaling appropriately.
- Delaying Legal Formalities: Startups often fail to protect IP or rush into agreements without vetting. Anthropic’s continued partnership with Wilson Sonsini underscores that legal measures aren’t an afterthought.
- Overlooking Competitive Landscape Early On: Don’t ignore competitors. Staying adaptable and maintaining differentiation ensured Anthropic positioned itself as OpenAI’s lead competitor. Are you keeping your edge over other local startups?
Key Lessons for European Female Entrepreneurs
Being bootstrapped can feel like climbing a massive hill with no support, but seeing how Anthropic builds its future offers encouragement to aim higher. For European founders, especially women, these lessons should resonate:
- Market leadership isn’t just for startups from Silicon Valley.
- Regularly update and adapt your vision. What worked in 2020 might not succeed in 2025, or beyond.
- Collaboration across skill sets always outmatches solo effort.
Conclusion
Anthropic's ambitious IPO plans aren’t just news, they’re a window into how even the most successful companies focus on preparation, expertise, and adaptability. As female entrepreneurs, we may not be chasing $300 billion valuations, but our drive to build bootstrapped businesses is no less ambitious.
Take a look at how you can start small but think big. Leverage tools and communities designed for your growth, and never underestimate the value of patience, focus, and preparation. Whether it’s reaching your next customers, launching a product, or scaling internationally, every milestone is a step toward your vision.
FAQ
1. Who did Anthropic hire for legal assistance with their IPO?
Anthropic hired Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a renowned Silicon Valley law firm, to begin IPO preparation in advance of its potential public listing in 2026. Learn more about Wilson Sonsini's role
2. What valuation is Anthropic targeting with its IPO preparations?
Anthropic is reportedly aiming for valuations exceeding $300 billion, buoyed by prior funding rounds such as a $13 billion Series F that placed its valuation at $183 billion. Read about Anthropic’s funding progress
3. When is Anthropic expected to go public?
Anthropic is planning an IPO as early as 2026, although the exact timeline has yet to be confirmed.
4. How does Anthropic compare to OpenAI in IPO plans?
OpenAI, with a valuation of $500 billion, is similarly preparing for an IPO, adding competitive pressure in the AI space. Discover OpenAI’s IPO ambitions
5. What has been Anthropic’s approach to preparing for its IPO?
Anthropic started early groundwork by engaging lawyers, forming strategic partnerships, and addressing compliance and governance processes to meet IPO readiness requirements. Explore Anthropic’s detailed preparation strategy
6. Why is Anthropic’s IPO significant for the tech sector?
Anthropic’s IPO could be one of the largest public offerings in tech history, signaling the growing importance of generative AI companies in the global economy.
7. What lessons from Anthropic’s strategy apply to startups?
Planning ahead, fostering strong founding teams, and investing in legal and financial readiness are key insights that startups can apply from Anthropic’s IPO journey.
8. How has Anthropic’s valuation evolved in recent years?
Anthropic’s valuation surged from $183 billion in September 2025 to potentially surpassing $300 billion with new fundraising efforts. Learn more about Anthropic’s valuation growth
9. How does Wilson Sonsini’s involvement benefit Anthropic?
Wilson Sonsini brings experienced legal counsel with a strong track record of managing IPOs for major tech companies like Google and Lyft. Discover Wilson Sonsini’s legacy in tech IPOs
10. What is the competitive landscape for AI IPOs?
Beyond Anthropic, other AI firms, including OpenAI, are preparing IPOs, underscoring fierce competition in AI market leadership and generative AI adoption globally. Explore OpenAI’s competitive edge
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
