Opinion: Potential IPO Risks of OpenAI May Trigger a Chain Reaction in Infrastructure Stocks

BlockBeats reported on June 18 that MIT cognitive science PhD and AI researcher Gary Marcus warned that OpenAI's potential IPO and cash burn issues may pose risks to certain tech stocks that are highly dependent on AI computing power demand. This viewpoint offers a bearish narrative for the current hot AI infrastructure trades.

Marcus believes that the valuations of companies like Nvidia, Oracle, and CoreWeave are partly based on the expectation that OpenAI will continue large-scale procurement of chips and data center capacity. If OpenAI's listing process faces setbacks, its valuation comes under pressure, or it cuts expenditures due to pricing wars, these suppliers could face downward revisions to their revenue expectations.

This month, OpenAI has already filed a confidential S-1 document to pave the way for a potential IPO. Meanwhile, the market is also focused on its high computing power costs, competition with Anthropic, and whether enterprise clients might reduce usage due to excessive AI costs.

Marcus's concerns are not limited to stocks. He pointed out that if there is a high degree of linkage between AI data center financing, cloud computing contracts, and OpenAI's demand, any contraction in core client spending could lead lenders to reassess the credit quality of AI-related assets.