Author: Pan Lingfei

Just seven days after calling for a slowdown, Anthropic is facing pressure to disrupt its own release rhythm.

According to Reuters, in the context of OpenAI's new model GPT-6 Astra launching just two weeks ago and a dramatic loss of market share on the enterprise side, Anthropic is evaluating the possibility of releasing a new model ahead of schedule. This shift reflects a reality: in the face of an IPO countdown and fierce market competition, the priority of the growth curve outweighs safety declarations.

According to Reuters, discussions about releasing a new model early have taken place internally at Anthropic, with sources revealing that the AI assistant Claude is deeply involved in the research and development of the next generation model. Meanwhile, reports indicate that Anthropic's IPO plan may be delayed until November.

The immediate trigger for this dynamic comes from user data from OpenRouter. Approximately two weeks after Astra's launch, it has captured about 13% of enterprise AI spending, while Anthropic's Fable series only accounts for about 8%. OpenRouter's analysis head Peter Walker publicly released charts indicating that since Astra's launch, OpenAI's share has quickly climbed to about 65% in the first week of September, while Anthropic has dropped to about 35%—this marks the first time in two and a half years that OpenAI has surpassed Anthropic on that platform.

Share Reversal Achieved in Two Weeks for Astra

In early September, the two companies engaged in an intense release rhythm confrontation. On September 1, Anthropic released Fable 5.1, positioning it as "the strongest programming and knowledge work model," and reduced cache read prices by 75%, aiming to consolidate the enterprise customer base with cost-effectiveness. Just two days later, on September 3, OpenAI released Astra, with CEO Sam Altman stating "we are working hard to get Astra into everyone's hands as soon as possible."

Weekly token usage share data from OpenRouter shows that from January to June 2026, Anthropic maintained over 50% platform share; after Astra's launch, OpenAI's share quickly rose, reaching about 65% in the first week of September, while Anthropic fell to about 35% during the same period. This reversal occurred in just about two weeks.

For Anthropic, the issue isn’t just the impact of the new model; it's also that its previous flagship product has shown signs of sluggish sales. Two months after the release of Fable 5, enterprise customers' willingness to upgrade to the highest-priced flagship version has been lower than expected, with shares lingering around 11%, as more users have opted for the more cost-effective Opus 5. The arrival of Astra could even shake the market position of being "adequate".

Cracks Between the "Slowdown" Narrative and Commercial Pressure

The context of this defensive action has drawn particular attention. On September 12, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published a long article publicly calling for a slowdown in AI development. Sam Altman and Elon Musk unusually echoed his sentiment, stating "Dario is right."

However, just seven days later, Reuters reported that Anthropic was considering disrupting its established release rhythm to launch a new model ahead of schedule. This shift exposes the tension between Anthropic's brand narrative and commercial reality: the banner of safety and responsible development cannot prevent enterprise customers from voting with their actual usage.

For a company that positions "responsible AI" as its core brand label while pushing for an IPO, releasing a model early is a commercially rational defensive action, but it also means it must reassess the "acceleration race" logic it publicly criticized within two weeks.

Priority Reordering Under the IPO Window

According to Reuters, Anthropic's IPO timeline may be pushed back to November, further narrowing the company's maneuvering space regarding its release strategy. On the eve of going public, visible revenue growth and market share are crucial for valuation and investor confidence.

From the perspective of enterprise customer data, the growth momentum of the Fable series has already slowed; after Astra's launch, Anthropic's share on the OpenRouter platform has been quickly eroded. In this context, launching a new model ahead of schedule becomes an option that Anthropic must consider under the dual pressures of commercial logic and IPO rhythm.

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