Anthropic, the maker of the Claude chatbot, announced on Sunday, October 18, that it will commit 5 percent of its shares to a new Anthropic Public Benefit Fund. The fund is a wholly owned LLC, not a tax-exempt charity, and the company’s board can add 2 percent more for every 50 percent increase in the company’s value above a baseline, Reuters reported.
The Washington Post reports the fund could be endowed with about $100 billion if Anthropic goes public at the roughly $2 trillion valuation some analysts expect. Anthropic’s seven founders have separately pledged to donate 80 percent of their wealth and equity; in total, roughly 20 percent of Anthropic’s shares are aimed at the public good.
The day after Anthropic’s announcement, Elon Musk posted on X: “Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America. This will be the first of many.” Musk gave no mechanism or eligibility details. Reuters estimated the pledge at roughly $10.5 to $11 billion, spread across about 72 million American children.
The two pledges, in brief
- Anthropic (announced Oct. 18): 5% of shares to a new Public Benefit Fund (an LLC, not a charity); board may add 2% per 50% rise in value
- The fund could reach about $100 billion at a ~$2 trillion listing valuation (the Post); the seven founders have separately pledged 80% of their wealth
- Musk (Oct. 19, on X): one SpaceX share to every U.S. child next year — no mechanism given; Reuters estimates $10.5–$11 billion across ~72 million children
The Post framed the two moves together: charitable projects that, in its deck’s words, “will attempt to soften the blow of technology’s disruption.”
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