Anthropic's IPO plans faced new pressure after its prospectus was released and several key partners reported quarterly results. The company disclosed a net loss of $80 billion for the first half of the year, hundreds of billions of dollars in compute commitments, and more than 90 pages of risk factors, according to CNBC.
Microsoft, Google and Amazon, which are both partners and major investors in Anthropic, reported results that added to market jitters around AI spending. All three issued capital expenditure figures or forecasts below analysts' estimates. Microsoft lowered its 2026 capex forecast to $170 billion from $175 billion. Alphabet maintained guidance of up to $205 billion, and Amazon reiterated its roughly $220 billion forecast.
Cash flow also drew scrutiny. Amazon reported negative free cash flow of $42.4 billion for the trailing 12 months, its second straight negative quarter. Google reported negative free cash flow of $9.1 billion, and its stock fell almost 13% on Thursday. Microsoft kept positive free cash flow of $18.6 billion but said it plans to raise $25 billion in bonds.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.9% on Friday, its first three-week losing streak since March. Nvidia and the semiconductor sector also declined after Intel issued a weak forecast. Futurum Group CEO Daniel Newman told CNBC that the hyperscaler results "raised eyebrows" and added doubt about capital structure. Wharton professor David Hsu questioned how AI technology would translate into a viable business.
Cloud revenue at Microsoft, Google and Amazon topped analysts' estimates, and Google's cloud revenue more than doubled from a year earlier. Anthropic did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.