Goldman Sachs: The AI boom is far from reaching the frenzied levels of the dot-com bubble; only about 50 new IPOs are expected this year.

According to Mars Finance, on June 26th, Goldman Sachs pointed out that the US IPO market is experiencing its strongest rebound in recent years in 2026, but it is far from replicating the speculative frenzy of the dot-com bubble era. So far this year, approximately 50 companies have gone public in the US, more than double the number from the same period last year; in terms of transaction value, the mid-year issuance size has reached approximately $120 billion, matching the record set in 2021. Ben Snider, Goldman Sachs' chief US equity strategist, stated in the bank's podcast that this is partly a normal recovery, driven by factors including a wave of large company IPOs and strong financing demand in the AI sector. While high valuations, strong investor confidence, and AI becoming a dominant investment theme are noteworthy bubble warning signs, Snider emphasized that one key indicator is far from historical peaks—the number of IPOs. Over the past 25 years, the US has averaged about 100 IPOs per year, and the current pace is close to that level, while 2021 saw over 250 IPOs, and the peak of the dot-com bubble in 1999 saw nearly 400. "Although the transaction amounts are quite high and the activity is accelerating, in my opinion, it is still far from the euphoria of those periods."