Cathie Wood's ARK Invest is making a simple but sharp argument: the biggest IPO opportunity now happens before companies ever hit the public market. Most investors miss the steepest growth during the private phase, she says. The timing lines up neatly with SpaceX's planned $75 billion IPO on Nasdaq — nearly triple Saudi Aramco's 2019 record.
Why companies stay private longer
The median age of a US company at IPO has climbed to 12 years, up from 5 in 1999, according to ARK research confirmed by University of Florida professor Jay Ritter. A big reason is the 2012 JOBS Act, which raised the shareholder cap that triggers mandatory public registration from 500 to 2,000. That change lets companies stay private far longer, building massive scale before ever filing an S-1. SpaceX is the poster child: by the time it lists, it'll already be worth nearly $1.77 trillion.
SpaceX's record-breaking debut
SpaceX filed for a $75 billion IPO — the largest on record — and plans to debut on Nasdaq on June 12 at $135 per share. That valuation is roughly what Aramco's 2019 deal raised, times three. The company skipped the normal IPO growth stage, meaning most retail investors never had a chance to buy in at a small valuation. Wood's thesis is that the real money was made years ago, during the private rounds.
The pipeline beyond SpaceX
ARK's Venture Fund holds six private companies with active IPO timelines, each already at public-market scale. OpenAI crossed $25 billion in annualized revenue by early 2026 in about three years. Anthropic confidentially filed for an IPO on June 1 at a $965 billion valuation. Databricks is also preparing its own listing. Wood's Big Ideas 2026 report pairs this pre-IPO case with a bullish Bitcoin forecast, but the core message is the same: the growth happens before the ticker appears.
How to get a piece
Access to ARK Venture Fund starts at $500 through SoFi or Titan. That's the only way for most people to get pre-IPO exposure without being an accredited investor or working at a venture firm. Whether the strategy pays off as advertised depends on how those six companies trade once they go public. SpaceX's June 12 pricing will be the first real test.
