Google’s Former CEO Quietly Owns 1% of Anthropic
A personal check Eric Schmidt wrote in 2021 may have become one of the most valuable private investments in artificial intelligence (AI). Its estimated value rises each time Anthropic receives a higher valuation.
Eric Schmidt, Google's former CEO, owns about 1% of Anthropic, according to people familiar with the matter on Monday, October 19, 2026. Neither Schmidt nor Anthropic has confirmed this figure.
His investment began with a check worth tens of millions of dollars during Anthropic's Series A funding round, when the company was valued at $461 million. At Anthropic's latest valuation of $965 billion, his stake could be worth about $10 billion. People outside his close circle do not know whether he has sold any of his shares.
Investors in Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG | GOOG Price Prediction, NASDAQ:GOOGL) did not treat the report as a major event. Schmidt was once Alphabet's CEO. The company's shares rose 1.05% to close at $344.18, giving it a total market value of $4.21 trillion.
What the Report Confirms and What It Leaves Open
There are no signed documents or public filings confirming these details. The claim that Schmidt owns 1% comes from unnamed sources. No public registration statement lists his holdings.
The possible timeline for an initial public offering (IPO) is also only a plan. Formal marketing could begin as early as the week of Monday, November 9. Trading could start before Thanksgiving, with the company listed by the end of the year. The valuation being discussed ranges from $1.8 trillion to $2 trillion. That would match or exceed SpaceX's $1.77 trillion offering in June.
At the high end of that range, Schmidt's stake could be worth $20 billion. His estimated net worth could rise by about one-third, from $57.5 billion to nearly $80 billion.
Anthropic's latest valuation is about 2,093 times its value during the Series A funding round. Venture capital funds, company insiders, and strategic partners benefited from this increase before ordinary public investors had a chance to buy shares.
Schmidt invests through TomorrowVentures, Innovation Endeavors, and the Hillspire family office. He has also invested in Mistral AI, Reflection AI, and World Labs. All these companies are privately owned, so their financial results cannot be independently verified.
Why Anthropic's Price Matters for Alphabet
Alphabet has its own business ties to Anthropic. Anthropic competes with Google's Gemini AI products but also uses Google Cloud. Schmidt's personal investment is a small governance issue for a company as large as Alphabet. It is separate from Alphabet's revenue and profit.
An IPO would matter because it would give investors a public market price for advanced AI models. Google Cloud's revenue grew 82% to $24.77 billion in the second quarter. The Gemini app has 950 million monthly active users. The companies supplying the power, cooling, and networking equipment needed for this growth are discussed in a free report on seven AI infrastructure stocks that aren't chipmakers.
If Anthropic receives a high valuation, Alphabet's own AI-related businesses could look cheap by comparison. Alphabet trades at about 23 times its expected earnings over the next 12 months.
Reality Check on an Unconfirmed Stake
Three important details remain uncertain: how much of Anthropic Schmidt owns, whether he has sold any shares, and what valuation the company will receive. Its valuation could change before the IPO price is set. Every estimate of Schmidt's stake is based on what it could be worth, not a confirmed amount.
A public offering this large could also draw money away from other stocks. Funds that want to invest directly in AI may sell some shares in very large companies to make room for Anthropic. Alphabet's spending also brings risks. In the second quarter, the company spent $44.92 billion on capital investments and had negative free cash flow of $5.86 billion.
Should You Buy or Sell GOOGL Stock
Alphabet lets investors buy shares in a publicly traded company with major AI businesses. Anthropic shares are not available on the public market because the company is not listed. Its shares are not freely traded, and the company is not profitable.
Alphabet's stock has gained 10.18% since the start of the year and 36.23% over the 12 months ending October 19. However, it remains below its highest price over the past 52 weeks, which was $408.10. In the second quarter, revenue rose 24.2% to $119.80 billion.
People who buy Anthropic shares at its IPO will pay a price set after early private investors have already benefited from the company's growth. The next important step is Anthropic's public registration filing. If Anthropic prices its offering at $1.8 trillion or more by the end of the year, while Alphabet's stock stays above its 200-day moving average of $340.90, that would support the idea that investors are starting to value Alphabet's AI business more highly.
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Omor Ibne Ehsan is a writer at 24/7 Wall St. He taught himself how to invest and focuses on growth stocks, stocks that rise and fall with the economy, and dividend-paying stocks. He looks for companies with strong financial foundations, good value, and long-term potential. He is also interested in high-risk, high-reward investments such as penny stocks.