Funding frenzy at Anthropic, hot start-up in A.I. scene.

TLDR:

Anthropic, a leading A.I. start-up, raised $7.3 billion in funding over the last year, with investments from major companies like Google, Amazon, and Salesforce. The funding deals were notable for their speed, size, and unique structures, including agreements to use technology from the investors.

Article Summary

Anthropic, a prominent A.I. start-up, experienced a funding frenzy, raising $7.3 billion in just one year. The remarkable funding spree began with a $450 million investment from Google and Salesforce, followed by significant investments from other tech giants like Amazon and Google. The venture capital firm Menlo Ventures also joined in with a $750 million investment.

One standout feature of Anthropic’s funding deals was the unique structures they took. For instance, Anthropic agreed to utilize technology, such as chips and cloud computing services, from the companies that invested in them. This effectively meant that a portion of the raised funds would be reinvested back into the investors.

Another interesting aspect of Anthropic’s funding strategy was the creation of a “special purpose vehicle” by Menlo Ventures to consolidate smaller investors interested in Anthropic. These deals were deemed complex by industry insiders like Dave Brown from Amazon Web Services, who was involved in the deal, highlighting the changing landscape of Silicon Valley deal-making.