Anthropic’s I.P.O. Risks Put the Flaw at the Heart of Its Public-Interest Promise
Risks in the prospectus
Anthropic’s prospectus devotes nearly 100 pages to risks, according to economist and Opinion contributor Natasha Sarin. She says the concerns include both threats to the company’s business and dangers its technology could pose to humanity.
Sarin describes some of those dangers as existential, including the possibility of human extinction. Anthropic Chief Executive Dario Amodei has also acknowledged that the technology carries real dangers.
A different corporate structure
Anthropic is organized as a public benefit corporation rather than a traditional corporation focused on shareholders. The company’s founders chose that structure after leaving OpenAI to start Anthropic, with the stated aim of serving humanity more broadly.
Sarin says the model asks the public to trust Anthropic to handle risks that could affect everyone. She is unsure the company can manage them by itself.
Founders and trustees
The company’s seven co-founders collectively hold a 50.1 percent stake, according to Sarin. They include Chief Executive Dario Amodei and company president Daniela Amodei, along with five other founding team members; the founders can direct day-to-day operations.
A second center of influence is the Long-Term Benefit Trust. It is intended to give the public-interest commitment more force, and includes trustees with experience in fields connected to Anthropic’s work.
Trust’s role and members
The trust has five trustee positions, though one is currently vacant, Sarin says. Among its members is Ben Bernanke, the former Federal Reserve chairman, whose research includes financial crises and their effects on the economy.
Public benefit corporations are uncommon but not unprecedented; Warby Parker is another company with a similar structure. Sarin says Anthropic’s distinctive step is giving the trust a role in advancing the company’s public-interest goals.
Key points
- Anthropic is preparing to go public at a target valuation of up to $1.4 trillion.
- Natasha Sarin says the prospectus identifies risks to the business and to humanity.
- The co-founders collectively hold 50.1 percent of the company.
- Anthropic’s Long-Term Benefit Trust has one vacant trustee position.