Anthropic's "Adjusted" Profit Exposes Wall Street's Numbers Game

Anthropic reported a net loss of $80.7 billion for the first half of this year, but the figure stems from accounting tied to convertible debt, creating complications ahead of a potential November IPO. The loss reflects rising liability values, not operational performance. Amazon and Alphabet recorded large valuation gains from the same funding deals, which analysts included in their adjusted earnings metrics. Anthropic's corresponding losses were not reflected in its adjusted profit figures, highlighting inconsistencies in how Wall Street treats such non-cash items. These unrealized gains and losses are part of GAAP net income, though they are volatile and unrelated to core business operations. The issue raises questions about whether alternative profit measures should exclude these items as Anthropic approaches its public market debut.