Anthropic is in discussions to secure $30 billion at a valuation of $900 billion.

      A funding round under the proposed conditions would elevate the Claude developer past OpenAI in valuation, occurring less than three months after its most recent record-breaking funding round. According to Bloomberg on Tuesday, Anthropic is in preliminary discussions to secure at least $30 billion in new funding, valuing the company at over $900 billion pre-money, as reported by sources familiar with the situation. If finalized, it would mark the largest fundraising effort in the company’s history and surpass OpenAI's valuation, following Anthropic's last record-setting round just a short time ago.

      The funding round has yet to be finalized. No term sheet has been signed as per Bloomberg's sources, and one indicated it could conclude by the end of this month. Previous reports in late April had hinted at a funding round possibly reaching up to $50 billion at the same valuation range, as noted by TechCrunch, indicating the deal's size has decreased in recent weeks, though the valuation has remained consistent.

      The rapid pace of developments is noteworthy. In February, Anthropic secured a $30 billion Series G round at a post-money valuation of $380 billion, led by ICONIQ, with co-leads including D. E. Shaw, Dragoneer, Founders Fund, and MGX. This funding was, at that time, the second-largest private financing deal ever. A round at a $900 billion pre-money valuation would more than double that amount in roughly three months.

      Anthropic’s revenue growth has been on a parallel trajectory. CEO Dario Amodei stated this spring that the company had achieved an annualized run-rate of $30 billion, up from approximately $14 billion in mid-February, and $87 million in January 2024. The primary driver of growth has been enterprise adoption: Anthropic reported over 1,000 enterprise customers each spending more than $1 million annually on Claude, a number that has reportedly doubled since February, with Claude Code generating an annualized rate of $2.5 billion.

      These figures highlight the interest from investors, as well as the timing. A public listing has been considered as early as October, and a private funding round of this magnitude would provide the company with sufficient working capital to support computing commitments during an IPO window. Anthropic has indicated its intention to invest heavily; for example, it has initiated a $1.5 billion joint venture with Blackstone, Hellman & Friedman, Goldman Sachs, and General Atlantic to integrate Claude within private-equity portfolio companies.

      The competitive implications of the valuation are also significant. OpenAI was valued at $852 billion in its March funding round, which marked the previous high in the industry. A closure at a pre-money valuation of $900 billion would position Anthropic above that threshold on paper, regardless of how the competition unfolds in the market.

      However, whether private markets can maintain this ranking for the remainder of the year is another matter, and investors in both companies have been quietly pondering this since at least last month. Anthropic did not provide any comment to Bloomberg when reached. The lead investor in the new round has not yet been publicly identified. ICONIQ, GIC, Coatue, and Founders Fund have previously participated in earlier funding rounds and could be expected to maintain their involvement if they opt to extend their positions.

      It is evident that the influx of capital pursuing AI infrastructure has not diminished, nor has the demand from compute-intensive model developers. At a $900 billion valuation, the company’s margin for error becomes tighter, but the runway for growth extends. Whether either of these conditions holds until October remains the next question for the market to resolve.