Ramp data shows AI spending stalling just as Anthropic nears its IPO

A new report from Ramp shows that AI spending has stalled despite increasing usage, with token volumes growing only 1.5% in August and September, down from 42% in July. This slowdown suggests that price competition and cost controls among major AI spenders may be capping revenue for companies like OpenAI and Anthropic. The top 1% of firms, which spend around $10,000 per employee per month, have stuttered slightly in their spend in August and September, while median firms spend $12-$15 per employee per month and the top 10% spend $600-$1,000. This could challenge investor assumptions about AI hypergrowth, especially as Anthropic gears up for its IPO.