Anthropic pledges 5% of its shares to public-benefit fund

Anthropic says it will commit 5% of its shares to a new fund for public-benefit projects, as the artificial intelligence company prepares for a possible stock market listing that could value it at more than $1tn, according to the BBC. [1]

The company said its proposed Public Benefit Fund could support non-profit organisations and work addressing AI’s impact on jobs. It said the fund’s shares would not be used for lobbying or political donations. The fund could receive a further 2% of Anthropic’s shares if its board chooses to allocate them, the company said.

Anthropic’s announcement comes amid scrutiny of the industry over AI safety and its effects on society and the economy. The BBC reported that Anthropic said in its IPO filing that AI could pose “catastrophic or existential risks to humanity”.

Elon Musk criticised the plan on social media, saying he recommended giving the shares directly to the public. Anthropic also told prospective investors last week that its revenue rose 45% to $16.8bn in the three months to the end of September, the BBC reported.