Anthropic expected to receive high junk rating from credit agencies after IPO

Credit analysts expect Anthropic to receive a high “junk” rating from ratings agencies following its initial public offering, according to a Financial Times report cited by TechCrunch. The forecast comes from Blackstone, and TechCrunch notes it remains a prediction rather than a confirmed rating.

A junk designation, should it materialize, would place Anthropic’s debt below investment grade, a tier that typically carries higher borrowing costs and narrower access to capital markets. TechCrunch’s reporting frames the implication plainly: a high junk rating would make it more difficult and costlier for Anthropic to raise the money needed to sustain its spending.

That spending has underwritten the company’s operations to date, per the report, and the financing question is tied directly to Anthropic’s ability to keep funding it going forward. The report does not specify a timeline for when a formal rating might be issued, nor does it detail which agencies are expected to weigh in.

TechCrunch’s brief account does not elaborate on Blackstone’s methodology or cite additional analysts corroborating the forecast. The piece situates the prediction within a broader pattern of scrutiny facing major AI labs as they pursue public listings and weigh the cost of continued infrastructure and research investment against market appetite for their debt.

No further detail on Anthropic’s response, if any, is included in the available reporting.