By Aisha Down and Dan Milmo
Most people have probably heard of “unicorns” – technology startups valued at more than $1bn – but 2026 is shaping up to be the year of the “hectocorn”, with several US and European companies potentially floating on stock markets at valuations over $100bn.
OpenAI, Anthropic, Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Stripe are among the big names said to be considering an Initial Public Offering (IPO) this year.
The success of their flotations – whether the shares maintain their value, rise or fall – could shape concerns about the AI race and whether the resulting market mania is a bubble.
Some may have had plans to float last year that were delayed or derailed by the US federal shutdown and sweeping government job cuts hitting the market watchdog.
This year is shaping up to be similarly geopolitically choppy, with President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats against European allies over Greenland casting a shadow over shares this week.
However, despite last year’s turmoil, markets soared to near-record highs on the back of the AI boom, and investors are expected to keep betting big on the technology for now.
Here are some of the companies most likely to take advantage of that enthusiasm with an IPO.
OpenAI
The San Francisco-based company is synonymous with AI, having triggered a frenzy of public interest in the subject with the launch of the ChatGPT chatbot in November 2022. It is a loss-making business but has attracted investment from big names including Microsoft and the Japanese group SoftBank, and its valuation has boomed from $29bn in 2023 to $500bn last year.
If OpenAI floats it could be valued at as much as $1trn, according to Reuters.
Underpinning these numbers is a hope that demand for AI, and the transformative impact of its adoption by workplaces and individuals, more than pays back the multitrillion-dollar investment in the datacentres and computer chips that support it. OpenAI is committed to spending $1.4trn on such infrastructure over the next eight years, but must convince investors it can pay that back.
“OpenAI is clearly the single biggest test for the entire AI economy, the bubble idea and whether it’s all built on sand,” said Neil Wilson, an analyst at Saxo Capital Markets.
SpaceX
Elon Musk’s company reportedly reached a $800bn valuation in December and is preparing to go public.
However, “whether it actually happens, when it happens, and at what valuation are still highly uncertain,” according to comments from its Chief Financial Officer, Bret Johnsen, in a letter obtained by Reuters.
On the one hand, geopolitical volatility is likely to make the nexus between tech, aerospace and defence more appealing to investors, said Mike Bellin at PricewaterhouseCoopers. This may have ramifications for SpaceX.
On the other, Elon Musk’s reputation, and that of Tesla, make the outcome of the IPO somewhat harder to predict, said Mark Moccia, an analyst at research firm Forrester, although he expects “a huge mix of institutional and retail investors.”
“SpaceX in particular is what retail investors are homing in on this year as it’s got the buzz and it’s Musk,” said Neil Wilson, an analyst at Saxo Capital Markets.
Kraken
One of the world’s largest crypto exchanges – not to be confused with the software spin-off of the UK energy firm Octopus –, Kraken submitted its paperwork for an IPO in November, and was valued roughly at $20bn.
The crypto firm could face a race to float its stock before this year’s US midterm elections, say analysts, as there is a risk political changes in the US reverse Trump’s laissez-faire approach to crypto regulation.
Bolt
The Estonian rival to Uber, Bolt lined up an adviser for an IPO last year. The company has had a difficult few years, however, with reported losses of more than €102m in 2024. The company is reportedly considering whether to list in the EU or the US.
A Bolt spokesperson said: “Any date for listing will depend on favourable market conditions, which remains a significant factor in determining when Bolt goes public. Our teams are working to ensure the business is ready to IPO, should market conditions be right.”
Stripe
The online payment processing company was founded by the Irish brothers Patrick and John Collison in 2010. It has headquarters in California and Dublin and has long been a cornerstone of fintech.
Last year it was reported that Stripe had attained a valuation of $107bn, a bounceback from when it was valued at $50bn in 2023.
Databricks
This company helps customers to build AI agents – tools that carry out tasks autonomously – using their own data. Its revenue grew more than 55% last year and last month it achieved a valuation of $134bn.
Ali Ghodsi, Databricks’ Chief Executive, said the company’s growth rate is due to businesses building “data-intensive applications that use AI.”
Monzo
Monzo is an online bank that operates entirely through a mobile app. It reported more than 12 million customers in 2025.
The London-based fintech – the jargon for tech firms that offer financial services like banking or payments – was reportedly working with Morgan Stanley last summer to meet investors before a 2026 IPO – but this was later complicated by the exit of its Chief Executive, TS Anil.
Anthropic
Like OpenAI, the San Francisco-headquartered startup behind the chatbot Claude and the now wildly popular Claude Code is also yet to turn a profit.
This month, the company signed a term sheet for a $10bn funding round that puts its valuation at $350bn.
If Anthropic floats, it may have ramifications that go beyond the AI race. Many of its employees are aligned with the effective altruism movement, and energetic discussion on internet forums suggests that money could pour into causes aligned with this movement if its employees cash out.
*PHOTO CAPTION: SpaceX headquarters.
