The IPO Math Forces the Issue
Both OpenAI and Anthropic are on IPO timelines for the second half of 2026. OpenAI completed the largest private funding round in history in April, $122 billion at an $852 billion post-money valuation. Anthropic has reportedly surpassed $30 billion in annualized revenue. Massive numbers, both of them. Also both attached to companies that are still burning cash at extraordinary rates.
Public markets will not tolerate the gap between subscription revenue and compute cost that has defined the past three years. The moment either company files, analysts will demand unit economics that show a path to margin. Usage-based billing is the fastest way to demonstrate that path.
None of this contradicts the repricing thesis. The pricing war is the last land grab before the gate closes. Both companies are spending aggressively now to lock in users whose switching costs will make them sticky when prices rise. OpenAI offers two months free. Anthropic offers 50% more capacity. Both expire in July. What comes after July is the real pricing.
They're going to try to stick taxpayers with the debt in a "too big to fail" way, and the current administration will help them.
Another classic example of ...
CAPITALIZE PROFITS!
SOCIALIZE LOSSES!
When the system ... any system fails, the owner class like to congratulate themselves on how they made it work so good ... but when it fails, they're the ones always groveling to the masses asking them to pay for everything.