Tech IPOs 2026: What are retail investors planning to do with SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI?

In June 2026, we asked Boring Money readers what they planned to do with the year's three big tech IPOs: SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI. Nearly half plan to buy Anthropic when it lists, almost double the appetite for OpenAI. Most are treating these as small punts rather than long-term holds, and the most confident investors are the least likely to participate. Here's what our readers said, and what Holly thinks.

SpaceX hit the headlines in June with its rocketing IPO. A few days after launch, those who had participated saw paper profits of about 40%.

Early euphoria has cooled slightly as some take profits and digest a recent acquisition and financial plans in more detail.

This was the first in a trio of IPOs we expect to see in 2026. Next up we anticipate Claude’s Mummy, Anthropic and then it’s ChatGPT’s parent, OpenAI.

A week after the SpaceX launch, we asked our readers what they made of these IPOs. What are retail investors planning?

Anthropic leads investor appetite, but why?

Nearly half of respondents were planning to buy Anthropic when it lists, (48%), almost double the appetite for OpenAI, despite both being frontier AI labs. The top reasons to back Anthropic can be grouped as “it’s the AI leader” (25%) and “I use it and rate it” (23%). It largely came down to product, ethics and admiration for the CEO. Many readers use Claude - it's deemed useful and people think it will survive and thrive.

Just one quarter of readers had participated in the SpaceX IPO. By contrast, nearly half were planning to back the Anthropic launch and 28% the OpenAI launch.

How much are investors planning to put in?

According to feedback from our readers, these IPOs will predominantly be low-commitment buys, with small amounts placed as a ‘punt’ or in the hope of making a quick buck.

Nearly half of those who bought into SpaceX have already sold or plan to, investing to 'profit asap', not hold for the long term.

As for those planning to buy Anthropic, these are readers who already hold a bit in cash - 76% said they would buy using cash that they already hold, rather than by selling other holdings.

Who is buying, and which platforms are they using?

Interest is broadly consistent across all age groups and (unusually) women report being keener than men. Women are more likely to have bought or are planning to buy SpaceX and Anthropic, and are level with men on OpenAI. It’s an outright competition in one household – one lady plans to back Anthropic, but her husband is in the OpenAI camp! Adds another dimension to financial planning!

The main platforms under consideration for IPO participation are AJ Bell, Hargreaves Lansdown, interactive investor and Trading212.

Why are some investors sitting out all three IPOs?

The most common reason mentioned by investors as to why they are sitting out all three of these IPOs is a principled preference for diversification

and an aversion to volatility.

The valuation of course raised eyebrows.

Quite.

And several readers noted that they expect to end up with exposure eventually anyway, via their index trackers:

Eye-watering valuations are also deterring some. Roughly a quarter of respondents thought that SpaceX was overpriced or FOMO-driven.

And notably there is an anti-Musk sentiment which some bankers report has led to lower engagement and interest with the SpaceX IPO in Europe than in the US, Canada, Australia and Japan.

Someone simply noted that he didn’t want to add to Musk’s existing wealth.

Do more confident investors behave differently?

Those most likely to participate across all three IPOs say that they have ‘High’ confidence about investing matters. However, those who rate themselves as “Very High” confidence are the least likely to invest across the board. The most self-assured are reportedly the most disciplined: happiest to get exposure through funds and skip the punt. And less confident investors feel understandably hesitant about the jargon, process and risk.

Holly's verdict: fun speculation, not long-term investing

One kind reader said:

So what do I think!? The consensus reader views are interesting. Momentum and hype can drive markets as much as economics, and if our readers’ views on Anthropic reflect broader investor views, then this IPO will be one to watch.

SpaceX is the most controversial play, driven by Musk-o-phobia and high valuations. And OpenAI sits somewhere in between: recognised but not particularly loved.

I think the 2026 IPOs are more about greed than numbers and there is a head of steam in these markets. The valuations look nuts to me, but I agree with one of our readers.

However, 1999 was a little different – many of the companies riding that dot-com wave didn’t make decent revenues, let alone profits. And if I think about how my search activity has changed even over the last 6 months, the impact these players make on our lives is massive. We typically overestimate the short-term potential and under-estimate the long-term potential of these structural shifts in behaviour.
That said, I still anticipate a market correction at some point. Just not quite yet. I think there are too many powerful players with a vested interest in keeping the hype going in 2026. I will dip into Anthropic as I did with SpaceX (subject to price and reading the prospectus). But it will be a small play. With money I can afford to lose. I will set a ‘stop loss’. And sell pretty quickly like I did with SpaceX.

It’s fun speculation. But not long-term investing. That will come from my much more sensible and boring global tracker

funds which will ultimately own these anyway.