Anthropic commits 5% of shares to public benefit fund as valuation grows

Anthropic (Unlisted (US):ANTHRO), the company that makes the Claude chatbot, plans to give 5% of its shares to a new fund set up to benefit the public. It may give the fund more shares as the company's value grows.

The proposed Anthropic Public Benefit Fund would receive another 2% of the company's shares for every 50% increase in its value above a starting value that has not been disclosed. The company's board would decide when to make these additional allocations.

Shareholders must approve the initial allocation. Anthropic plans to share more information about how the fund will be run and the value increases that could lead to more shares in the coming months.

The fund will set aside company shares to support projects that benefit the public. These projects will go beyond Anthropic's existing research, scientific partnerships and discounts for non-profit organisations.

The fund could give large donations to established charities or make payments directly to specific groups. This would give Anthropic more freedom to respond to the effects of artificial intelligence on society.

One possible focus is how AI affects jobs. Fast progress in AI could disrupt the job market, even as the technology creates significant economic value.

Anthropic has already promised $200 million for research into AI's economic effects and ways to address them. However, the company said that bigger steps may be needed.

The company will set up the fund as a limited liability company that it fully owns, rather than as a registered charity. This structure will let it change how it distributes support among different projects.

The fund's shares will not be used to support lobbying or political donations in the United States or any other country.

Anthropic said that this new commitment, together with promises already made by its founders and a programme that matches employees' donated shares, would bring the share of the company dedicated to public benefit to about 20%. This figure does not include possible increases in the future.

When Anthropic was founded, its co-founders promised to donate 80% of their personal shares in the company. About half of its employees take part in a programme that matches shares they promise to donate.

Anthropic plans to publish more information about the fund's structure and how it will be managed. It also plans to release a separate public benefit report explaining its progress toward its stated mission.