A $400 million superyacht would be expensive even for a billionaire, but not for Eric Schmidt, who smartly bet early on Claude maker Anthropic and is in line for an eye-watering windfall of $20 billion+ making his secret explorer yacht a rounding error

Eric Schmidt has spent many years working with top people in Silicon Valley and helping build some of the world's biggest technology businesses. Now, he could make so much money from one of his investments that even his most expensive plans at sea might seem small. The former Google CEO has been linked to a 351-foot explorer yacht being built in Spain. The ship is expected to cost more than $400 million and is designed for trips far beyond the usual routes taken by luxury yachts.

The huge sums now being discussed for Anthropic, the artificial intelligence company Schmidt supported in its early days, could make the yacht's price seem much less important. If Anthropic goes public on the stock market at the highest values now being discussed, Schmidt's reported share in the company could be worth as much as $20 billion. That would make a custom-built luxury yacht seem like a relatively small expense in his investment portfolio.

According to Bloomberg, Schmidt owns about 1% of Anthropic. He invested tens of millions of dollars in the company's $124 million Series A funding round in 2021. According to PitchBook data cited by Bloomberg, Anthropic was worth just $461 million at the time. That is far below the enormous values now being discussed for its possible first sale of shares to the public, known as an initial public offering, or IPO.

After a private funding round in May 2026, Anthropic was valued at $965 billion. If Schmidt still owns his full reported share, it could already be worth about $9.65 billion. Bloomberg has reported that potential investors have discussed an IPO value of $1.8 trillion to $2 trillion. At those prices, Schmidt's share would be worth between $18 billion and $20 billion. However, neither his reported ownership nor the company's final value at a stock market listing has been independently confirmed.

From an early AI investment to a $20 billion paper fortune

The possible profit from Schmidt's investment is enormous, especially because he reportedly invested when Anthropic was still a young company trying to make its mark in the growing artificial intelligence industry. Its founders wanted to build AI systems that people could rely on more. Since then, its Claude models have become an important part of its business plans. Schmidt reportedly invested before spending on AI grew dramatically and changed the technology industry. This early investment could bring him a huge return if Anthropic reaches the values now being discussed. His estimated fortune of $57.5 billion could rise to around $80 billion if he keeps his entire reported share and the company reaches the top end of the expected IPO range. But this would be the estimated value of his assets, not money paid into his bank account.

There are reasons to be careful about these predictions. Some Anthropic investors have reportedly discussed a lower value of about $1.5 trillion because revenue growth has slowed. At that value, Schmidt's share would still be worth about $15 billion. Research firm New Constructs has given the company a much lower estimated value of $144 billion. The final result will depend on how much investors want to buy the shares, how well Anthropic performs financially and the conditions of any eventual stock market listing. The company could begin promoting its shares to investors as early as the week of November 9, before a possible stock market debut ahead of Thanksgiving. For now, the most striking possibility is that an investment of tens of millions of dollars could turn into a shareholding worth tens of billions.

A $400 million explorer yacht in a whole new class of luxury

Schmidt's reported interest in yachts offers a striking contrast with the possible value of his AI investment. Project Incógnita is an explorer yacht about 107 meters long, being built at Freire Shipyard in Vigo, Spain. It has been linked to the former Google chief, but the shipyard has not publicly confirmed who owns it. The vessel is designed with a steel hull built to handle icy waters, six decks and a reported 5-megawatt battery system. These features suggest that it is meant for long journeys and difficult conditions, rather than simply traveling between popular ports in the Mediterranean Sea.

The yacht is reportedly designed to carry 16 guests and as many as 44 crew members and other staff. Its large fuel supplies and storage for helicopter fuel suggest that it is an expedition vessel on a scale rarely seen even among superyachts. Its estimated price of more than $400 million has not been confirmed. Its exact delivery date is also uncertain. Available listings suggest 2027, while the shipyard's own project page still gives 2026.

Even if the yacht costs $400 million, that would equal just 2% of a $20 billion shareholding in Anthropic. This comparison shows how Schmidt's technology investments could dwarf even his ambitious plans at sea. His interests may also go beyond building a remarkable yacht. A proposed purchase of Spain's Metalships & Docks could give him another role in the maritime industry.

Reports have described plans that could include building and repairing ships for ocean research and exploration. However, the purchase has not been confirmed as complete, and Metalships is a different shipyard from the one building Incógnita. If Anthropic reaches anything close to the values now being discussed, Schmidt could see the estimated value of his investments rise dramatically just as his plans at sea are growing. A $400 million explorer yacht would still be an extraordinary display of wealth. But next to a possible $20 billion investment in AI, even a ship of this size could seem almost modest.