The Mystery of the AI Bubble: Anthropic's Soaring Valuation Drives Storage Stocks

Scientific Approaches to Easing Anxiety

Human anxiety is often rooted in stress responses from the amygdala. Simply telling someone to “calm down” does little to address these underlying mechanisms. A truly effective method is to slowly write down the causes of the anxiety on paper. This process shifts control from the amygdala, which triggers tension and alertness, to the prefrontal cortex, which enables rational thinking. The more thoroughly you write and analyze your concerns, the more your anxiety naturally diminishes.

The Surge in Semiconductor and Storage Stocks

In May 2026, one of the events that rattled investors was the dramatic surge in semiconductor stocks. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 150% compared to a year earlier. Stocks of various semiconductor storage companies saw even greater increases, with SNDK closing at $1,562 on May 8, a staggering 38-fold rise from the previous year. This rapid ascent can be attributed to increased demand for storage driven by soaring valuations of AI-related companies.

Misconceptions Common Among AI Startups

Many speculative investors tend to confuse basic concepts like revenue and profit. For instance, if a company claims an ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) of $100 million, it means its most recent monthly revenue is about $8.33 million, not its annual revenue. Furthermore, if a company reports ARR without mentioning profits, it often signals significant losses. If ARR figures remain stagnant over time, it could indicate shrinking revenues and deepening financial losses.

Anthropic’s Business Realities and Its Soaring Valuation

Taking the highly-watched AI model company Anthropic as an example, media reports from late April 2026 suggest the company’s ARR is nearing $40 billion, which translates to a monthly revenue of about $3.3 billion. However, its cumulative revenue since its founding barely exceeds $5 billion, and its estimated monthly losses range from $1.1 billion to $1.7 billion. The company has raised a total of $72.3 billion over five years, relying on continuous fundraising to sustain operations.

In terms of valuation, Anthropic achieved a valuation of $380 billion during a fundraising round in February 2026, which jumped to over $900 billion just three months later. Secondary markets for private equity reportedly valued the company at as much as $1.2 trillion. In contrast, the market capitalization of Berkshire Hathaway, a company with extraordinarily high profitability, stands at only around $1 trillion, starkly highlighting the speculative nature of the AI valuation bubble.

Competitive Landscape and Future Uncertainty

The AI industry is marked by rapid competition and innovation, with low switching costs for new products. Anthropic’s CEO recently acknowledged that other U.S. companies’ AI models are only 1–3 months behind theirs, while Chinese companies lag by 6–12 months. Long-term dominance is far from certain, and the high profit margins touted by optimists do not account for the high costs of training new models or the downward price pressures from market competition.

Conclusion

The skyrocketing valuations of large-scale AI model companies like Anthropic have driven up capital expenditures across the AI industry, fueling prosperity in the storage sector. However, this frenzy carries the risk of an overheated investment climate and unsustainable valuation bubbles. Investors are urged to approach these developments with a critical and analytical mindset.