Anthropic Commits 5% of Shares to New Public Benefit Fund
By The Associated Press · · TexaHub · Artificial Intelligence
Anthropic said it will place 5 percent of its shares in a new entity, the Anthropic Public Benefit Fund, subject to stockholder approval. With existing pledges, about 20 percent of shares are now directed to the public good.
Structure of the fund
Anthropic announced on Sunday that it will commit 5 percent of its shares to the Anthropic Public Benefit Fund, which would be a limited liability company wholly owned by the company rather than a charity. The commitment requires stockholder approval. [1][2]
The fund could support large donations to traditional nonprofits or direct payments to specific groups, the company said. It cited labour market disruption from AI as one possible cause, and said none of the fund's equity would be used for lobbying or political giving. [1][2]
Growth mechanism and existing pledges
The board can add a further 2 percent of shares each time Anthropic's value rises 50 percent above a set baseline, which the company has not disclosed. [2]
Combined with existing pledges, including an equity donation match programme in which about half of employees take part, roughly 20 percent of shares are now dedicated to the public good before any additions. The cofounders have pledged to donate 80 percent of their wealth. [1]
Context
Anthropic has already committed $200 million to study how AI affects the labour market, and the company said it will share more on the fund's structure, governance and valuation milestones in the coming months. [1][2]
The company is a public benefit corporation and is reportedly planning an initial public offering as soon as November. [1]
Sources
[1] Anthropic commits 5% of its stock to a new 'public benefit' fund — Associated Press via ABC News
[2] AI giant Anthropic commits 5% of shares to 'public benefit' fund — Al Jazeera