They’re worried about flopping. Investors should take note

Back in June, we wrote about how OpenAI and Anthropic were widely expected to go public at trillion-dollar valuations as early as September or October, following SpaceX’s blockbuster initial public offering back in June.

Now, both of the big AI labs have officially pushed back their IPOs — Anthropic until at least November, and OpenAI until next year.

They’re not the only tech companies that have announced and then delayed buzzy stock market debuts. Oura, the maker of those little smart rings you might have seen your health-conscious friends wearing, announced a multibillion-dollar IPO on Sept. 21 before abruptly postponing it earlier this week.

Why are so many hotly-anticipated tech IPOs getting pushed back, and how should retail investors think about these companies? We talked to three IPO experts at some of the country’s most prominent universities to find out.