# OpenAI lost $10.9 billion on $10 billion in sales last quarter. Anthropic lost $567 million on $17 billion

OpenAI's first $10 billion quarter came with a wider adjusted loss, investor documents show. The labs count differently, but the gap is stark before Anthropic's IPO.

By Patrick Karsh · 567 Business
Published: 2026-11-11T15:07:16.163207Z
Updated: 2026-11-11T15:07:42.783822Z
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OpenAI booked about $10 billion in revenue from July through September, its first $10 billion quarter. It still posted an adjusted operating loss of $10.9 billion, up from $10.1 billion in the spring, according to documents shared with investors on Tuesday and [reported by the Wall Street Journal via Reuters](https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/openai-posts-steep-losses-even-as-quarterly-revenue-rises-to-10-billion-wsj-reports-5017353). Put simply, OpenAI spent about $1.09 to run its business for every $1 it brought in, before counting stock pay.

Its main rival looks very different on paper. Anthropic reported third-quarter revenue of $16.96 billion and an operating loss of $567 million in its amended IPO filing, [Reuters reported](https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/anthropics-quarterly-loss-shrinks-revenue-jumps-ahead-of-blockbuster-ipo-4992139). That gap lands one week before Anthropic is due to price its stock sale.

## What OpenAI told investors

The revenue jump was real. Sales rose nearly 50% from the second quarter and almost tripled from a year earlier, [Bloomberg reported](https://news.bloomberglaw.com/private-equity/openai-third-quarter-revenue-soars-nearly-50-to-10-billion), citing people familiar with the matter. President Greg Brockman and Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar spoke on the call, [Quartz reported](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126), citing Bloomberg. OpenAI declined to comment to Quartz and did not respond to Reuters.

| Measure | Q2 2026 | Q3 2026 |
| --- | ---: | ---: |
| Revenue | $6.7 billion | $10 billion |
| Adjusted operating loss | $10.1 billion | $10.9 billion |
| Adjusted operating margin | -150% | -109% |
| Stock-based pay (not in loss) | - | $2.6 billion |

Sources: [Reuters/WSJ](https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/openai-posts-steep-losses-even-as-quarterly-revenue-rises-to-10-billion-wsj-reports-5017353), [Quartz/Bloomberg](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126), [Computing](https://www.computing.co.uk/news/2026/ai/openai-narrows-revenue-gap-anthropic-but-increased-losses). A dash means the figure was not reported.

The margin did get better. A loss of $1.09 per dollar of sales is less bad than $1.50. But the loss in dollars still grew, because costs rose almost as fast as sales.

There is also a gap between the hype and the books. OpenAI told investors its annualized revenue was about $50 billion at the end of September. That is short of the $68 billion figure that had been widely cited, which included gross revenue from partner companies, [Quartz reported](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126).

## Why the two labs look so far apart

The headline numbers are not measured the same way, and that matters. OpenAI's $10.9 billion loss leaves out $2.6 billion of stock-based pay. Anthropic's $567 million loss includes stock pay, [Computing noted](https://www.computing.co.uk/news/2026/ai/openai-narrows-revenue-gap-anthropic-but-increased-losses). The two companies have also used different methods to count revenue, [according to Bloomberg](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126). So the true gap is, if anything, wider than the headline, but no one outside the companies can line them up exactly.

```chart
type: column
title: Quarterly revenue, OpenAI vs. Anthropic
note: Billions of US dollars. The companies count revenue differently.
prefix: $
suffix: B
source: [Quartz/Bloomberg](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126), [Reuters](https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/anthropics-quarterly-loss-shrinks-revenue-jumps-ahead-of-blockbuster-ipo-4992139)
---
Quarter | OpenAI | Anthropic
Q2 2026 | 6.7 | 11.6
Q3 2026 | 10 | 16.96
```

Anthropic passed OpenAI in quarterly revenue for the first time in the second quarter, with $11.6 billion against $6.7 billion, [Quartz reported](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126). OpenAI closed some of the distance in the third, growing about 50% while Anthropic's growth slowed to about 47% from 144%, [CNBC reported](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/11/02/anthropic-ant-s-1-quarter-financials.html) from the filing.

Anthropic is not cheap to run either. Its net loss for the quarter was $23.29 billion, though most of its losses this year came from changes in the value of convertible notes rather than day-to-day costs, per [CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/11/02/anthropic-ant-s-1-quarter-financials.html). It has also signed about $895.4 billion in compute and lease commitments. We broke down that IPO math in [our Anthropic IPO story](/news/anthropic-ipo-valuation-selloff) and the wider web of promises in [our look at $4.49 trillion in off-balance-sheet AI commitments](/news/ai-off-balance-sheet-4-trillion-bailey-bubble).

## What drove OpenAI's growth

OpenAI is chasing business buyers and cutting prices to do it. The company has been lowering prices on its newest models to win market share, and it recently hired a new chief revenue officer, Dali Rajic, to focus on companies, [Computing reported](https://www.computing.co.uk/news/2026/ai/openai-narrows-revenue-gap-anthropic-but-increased-losses). Brockman said at a WSJ conference this month that the first two quarters were rough but the third saw an "incredible revenue inflection," citing a deal with JPMorgan Chase.

Consumers are paying too, but only a small share of them. About 100 million people pay for ChatGPT. That is roughly 8.5% of weekly users, per [Computing](https://www.computing.co.uk/news/2026/ai/openai-narrows-revenue-gap-anthropic-but-increased-losses). OpenAI is also pushing those users toward new products while it retires old ones, as in [its plan to shut off Standard Voice and custom GPTs on Dec. 11](/news/openai-standard-voice-custom-gpts-retire-december-11).

## How X reacted

WSJ Tech framed the result the way most of the market read it: strong growth, but a steep loss that shows how hard it is to catch Anthropic. The post drew thousands of views within hours.

https://x.com/WSJTech/status/2120291276742410349

Coin Bureau, a finance account with more than 1 million followers, tied the loss to the broader AI building spree. Its point: Big Tech is borrowing heavily to build data centers, and one of the biggest buyers of that capacity is losing more than it earns. The post drew more than 30,000 views.

https://x.com/coinbureau/status/2120296696345485392

On Reddit, a [r/singularity thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/singularity/comments/1xt2oa8/) titled "After 4 years, OpenAI has lost its lead to Anthropic despite having a massive head start" went up on Tuesday evening, as the numbers spread. Posts like these show what people are saying. They do not prove what investors as a group think.

## OpenAI still needs cash, and Anthropic sells stock first

OpenAI needs outside cash, and it is still raising it. The company is finalizing a funding round that values it at $1.25 trillion and has closed an initial $11 billion piece, [Bloomberg reported via Quartz](https://qz.com/openai-revenue-operating-loss-10-billion-third-quarter-111126). Computing reported that the round has so far raised less than half of an initial $30 billion goal. OpenAI has pushed its own stock market debut to next year.

Anthropic goes first. Its shares are expected to price on November 18, [CNBC reported](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/11/10/anthropic-sets-price-range-of-70-to-78-in-upcoming-ipo.html). If public buyers pay up for the lab that lost $567 million, the pressure on OpenAI to show a path to profit will only grow. Federal Reserve officials are already warning about AI stock risk, as [our markets desk reported](/news/bowman-ai-correction-coreweave-709-million-loss).