Why You Shouldn't Buy OpenAI, SpaceX, or Anthropic Stock
A $3 Laboo Boo from Goodwill sounds like a silly flex until it turns into the cleanest investing lesson we know: the same thing people overpay for at peak hype often shows up later at a steep discount. That’s exactly how we think about IPO investing, especially when everyone starts yelling that SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic are about to go public and “regular people” can finally get in.
We walk through what an initial public offering actually is, why it feels like an important purchase opportunity, and why that feeling can be dangerous. By the time a company reaches the public market, venture capitalists, hedge funds, and insiders have often been in for years at far better prices. We also unpack the famous first-day “IPO pop” and the uncomfortable truth behind it: even if the average pop exists, high-speed traders and institutional access mean retail investors often buy after the jump, not before it.
Then we get concrete. We talk Rivian’s meteoric run and brutal fall, GoPro’s hype cycle, and what those stories teach about valuation, expectations, and paying today for profits that may or may not ever arrive. We also share why broad index funds and long-term investing often beat chasing the hottest IPOs, plus our simple rule for handling the next blockbuster listing: wait at least a year, let the hype cool, and judge the business on real numbers.
If you’ve ever felt FOMO on an IPO, hit play, then subscribe, share the episode with a friend who loves “can’t miss” stocks, and leave a review. What’s the most hyped investment you’ve ever regretted buying?
00:00 - The Laboo Boo Price Crash
00:27 - IPO Basics For Regular Investors
01:05 - Why The Public Gets Leftovers
01:33 - The IPO Pop Myth Explained
02:26 - Rivian And GoPro Hype Hangovers
03:40 - SpaceX And AI IPO Reality Check
04:16 - Index Funds Beat Hot IPOs
04:37 - The Simple Rule For Buying IPOs
05:10 - Final Lesson And Subscribe
The Laboo Boo Price Crash
SPEAKER_02Emily, I found a labu-boo at Goodwill for three dollars.
SPEAKER_00Three dollars?
SPEAKER_02Yep, three dollars. I thought they were like 300 bucks.
SPEAKER_00They were six months ago.
SPEAKER_02So it's not gonna make me rich.
SPEAKER_00Brandon, you just explained our entire episode.
SPEAKER_01Guys, SpaceX is going IPO, OpenAI is going IPO, and Anthropic is going IPO. Guys, SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI are going IPO. I'm buying
IPO Basics For Regular Investors
SPEAKER_01everything.
SPEAKER_00Welcome to Triple Demoney.
SPEAKER_01I'm Brandon. I just bought a $3 Laboo at Goodwill. I'm Austin and I'm about to be rich.
SPEAKER_00I'm Emily, and none of these things are as good as they sound.
SPEAKER_01Okay, wait. IPO. It means important purchase opportunity? Initial public offering. A private company sells shares to the public for the very first time. Austin, did you just I Googled it this morning.
SPEAKER_00He's right. Anthropic, OpenAI, SpaceX, they're all private. You can't buy their stock. IPO, that means they're public and they're letting the regular people in.
SPEAKER_02That sounds amazing.
Why The Public Gets Leftovers
SPEAKER_02Why is it bad?
SPEAKER_00Because by the time they let you in, everyone cooler than you has already gotten their shares.
SPEAKER_02Oh no.
SPEAKER_00Venture capitalists, hedge funds, wealthy insiders, they've been invested for years. The IPO is when they say, Here, public, take the rest of it.
SPEAKER_01So we're getting leftovers?
SPEAKER_00You're getting goodwill laboo boo. They're getting blind box, limited edition at retail.
SPEAKER_01I am the laboooboo.
The IPO Pop Myth Explained
SPEAKER_01Okay, Emily, don't IPOs always pop on the first day? I buy it, it pops, I sell it, free money.
SPEAKER_00According to data going back to 1980, the average IPO pop on the first day is 18%.
SPEAKER_0218% on the first day? Austin is right, that is free money.
SPEAKER_00Except you're not getting it at IPO price. By the time you click buy, the big guys with supercomputers have already bought up all the stock within a millisecond of trading.
SPEAKER_02Wait, a millisecond?
SPEAKER_00A hedge funds computer can execute a trade within one one thousandth of a second. By the time you see the trade load on your screen, they've already bought, popped, and sold.
SPEAKER_02They have computers faster than my hands? Oh.
SPEAKER_00So you buy the IPO at the already popped price, and then The Laboo Boo goes to goodwill. The Labooo Boo goes to goodwill.
SPEAKER_02Okay, give me the worst examples. I need
Rivian And GoPro Hype Hangovers
SPEAKER_02to feel it.
SPEAKER_00Rivian, an electric truck company. It IPO'd at $78 a share in 2021, and it popped at $106 by the end of the first day.
SPEAKER_01That is incredible.
SPEAKER_00Within a week, it was $172 a share, and the company was worth $153 billion.
SPEAKER_02That's more than a country.
SPEAKER_00The company was more valuable than Ford and General Motors combined. And the company was making almost zero dollars in revenue.
SPEAKER_01None?
SPEAKER_00Basically none. Just vibes and promises and then goodwill. As of 2026, Rivian is worth 19 billion dollars. Down 88% from its peak.
SPEAKER_02From 153 billion to 19 billion?
SPEAKER_00GoPro IPO'd at $24 a share in 2014. A camera on your head? Everybody went crazy.
SPEAKER_02I've seen a bunch of those on eBay for like 20 bucks.
SPEAKER_00The stock is now worth about a dollar, down 95% from its peak.
SPEAKER_01The GoPro is the laboo-boo. Maybe I don't buy every IPO.
SPEAKER_00He's learning.
SPEAKER_01Okay, Emily.
SpaceX And AI IPO Reality Check
SPEAKER_01SpaceX is different. They land rockets. That's not dreams, that's science.
SPEAKER_00SpaceX is currently valued at $1.75 trillion.
SPEAKER_02That's a lot of zeros.
SPEAKER_00SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic combined are valued at about half of Japan's stock market in more than Canada's.
SPEAKER_02Bigger than Canada.
SPEAKER_00And that's the price you'd be paying at IPO for future profits that may or may not even happen.
SPEAKER_01So I'm buying hopes and dreams?
SPEAKER_00You're buying hopes and dreams at Canada prices.
SPEAKER_01I can't afford
Index Funds Beat Hot IPOs
SPEAKER_01Canada.
SPEAKER_00The data backs up too. The Renaissance IPO ETF, a fund that specifically invests in US IPOs, has consistently underperformed an SP 500 index over time.
SPEAKER_01So buying boring index funds beats buying the hottest IPOs?
SPEAKER_00Every single time.
SPEAKER_01We're the laboooboo guys, Austin. We're the laboo boo guys,
The Simple Rule For Buying IPOs
SPEAKER_01bro.
SPEAKER_02So what do we do when SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI go public?
SPEAKER_00Wait at least a year, let the hype die, and let real financial data catch up to the dream. Then look at whether it's actually worth what it's asking.
SPEAKER_01And if it's still strong after a year?
SPEAKER_00Maybe, but just know that your boring index fund already captures the best companies growing in the world. So you don't need to gamble on the first day.
SPEAKER_02So the move is to not be the person camping outside of the store and waiting to buy the labu boo when it first drops.
SPEAKER_00Correct.
Final Lesson And Subscribe
SPEAKER_02Wait, did anyone actually do that?
SPEAKER_00I sat in a car for three hours trying to get one for a friend.
SPEAKER_02Emily. Emily?
SPEAKER_00It was a gray one. Nobody wanted gray. Now I have a laboo boo and a lesson I will never forget.
SPEAKER_02What's what's the lesson?
SPEAKER_00Don't buy the hype. Wait for the goodwill price.
SPEAKER_01Don't buy the labo boo at full price. Don't buy the IPO at full hype.
SPEAKER_00And the lesson is the same. Don't buy the hype, but hit the hype button.
SPEAKER_01We're triple the money. And if you bought a labu boo and are thinking about buying an IPO, you should really subscribe.