Anthropic To Invest 5% of Shares to Its Public Benefit Fund
While many tech companies give their executives more and more shares as rewards, Anthropic is directing shares toward helping the public instead.
Anthropic has announced plans to give 5% of its shares to the Anthropic Public Benefit Fund. The fund's share of the company can grow as the company becomes more valuable. However, important details about how the fund will be managed and when it will make payments have not yet been shared.
If shareholders approve the plan, 5% of Anthropic's shares will go to the fund on 19 October 2026. The board may also add another 2% for every 50% increase in the company's value above a starting level. That starting level has not yet been announced.
“The Fund can grow as we do,” Daniela Amodei, Anthropic's President, says in a LinkedIn post.
“I'm excited both about the good work this will make possible and the way this approach strengthens the direct relationship between our commercial business and our public benefit mission.”
How Anthropic's Public Benefit Fund works
If shareholders approve the plan, the fund will immediately receive 5% of Anthropic's shares. The board may then add another 2% for every 50% increase in the company's value above a starting level. Anthropic has not yet revealed what that starting level will be.
Anthropic says this plan is an alternative to giving executives more shares as rewards. In its announcement, the company said: “It is common practice for tech companies to offer escalating compensation awards to their executives.
“We are instead directing that equity to the public benefit.”
The main figures behind the fund are:
An initial 5% of Anthropic's shares, if shareholders approve the plan.
A possible extra 2% for every 50% increase in the company's value above a starting level that has not been announced.
Around 20% of the company's shares set aside for the public good, including shares promised by its founders and employees.
An existing commitment of US$200m to research how AI affects the job market.
No information yet about who will benefit from the fund, how it will be managed, or what increases in company value will trigger extra shares.
The fund is set up as a limited liability company (LLC) fully owned by Anthropic, rather than as a charity registered under section 501(c)(3) of US tax law. Anthropic says this structure allows it to adjust between different ways of giving.
The company has stressed that none of the shares will be used to support lobbying or political donations in the US or other countries.
The fund adds to promises Anthropic has already made. For example, the company's co-founders have promised to donate 80% of their shares, and around half of its employees take part in a program that matches share donations.
It is common for tech companies to give their executives more shares as rewards over time. Instead, we are directing those shares toward helping the public.
Anthropic, in a blog
A fifth of shares to be dedicated to the public good
Anthropic says that around 20% of its shares are now set aside for the public good, even before any increases linked to the company's value take place.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, as well as the rival AI company xAI, replied to Anthropic's announcement by saying: “I recommend giving the shares directly to the public.”
He added in the same discussion: “This is what I will be doing.”
In a separate post, he promised: “Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America”. However, he has not explained how this plan would work.
David Sacks, Co-Chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, raised questions about how the fund would be managed. He wrote on X: “You've put 20% of your equity in an LLC. Whether it serves the public good remains to be seen.”
Key partners for Anthropic
Amazon is Anthropic's largest investor, having invested US$8bn. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is Anthropic's main partner for cloud computing and AI training. Anthropic trains its AI models using Amazon's specially designed Trainium chips. Amazon has said that its ownership stake in Anthropic is a minority stake.
Google was one of Anthropic's earliest investors. Google Cloud provides the computing power from its TPU chips that Anthropic uses alongside AWS. Google has invested around US$3bn in Anthropic in total, and Google Cloud customers can use Claude.
Microsoft promised to invest up to US$5bn in Anthropic in November 2025. Azure customers can access Claude through Microsoft Foundry, and Anthropic has promised to buy US$30bn worth of computing power from Azure. Claude also supports features across Microsoft's Copilot products, including GitHub Copilot and Microsoft 365 Copilot.