Google has been investing heavily in artificial intelligence (A.I.) technologies and start-ups to stay ahead in the race for A.I. dominance. Court documents recently revealed that Google owns a 14 percent stake in the A.I. start-up Anthropic, with plans to invest an additional $750 million through convertible debt. This investment is part of Google’s strategy to bet on multiple A.I. companies in the rapidly evolving technology landscape.
Regulators have been scrutinizing big tech companies’ investments in A.I. start-ups, questioning whether these deals give them an unfair advantage. Google’s investment in Anthropic was brought to light during a landmark antitrust case over online search, where the Justice Department initially proposed forcing Google to divest its stake in the company. However, the proposal was later scaled back to require notification before making A.I. investments.
Anthropic, founded in 2021 by the Amodei siblings, aims to build A.I. with safety guardrails and is structured as a public benefit corporation. The company has raised over $14.8 billion from venture capital firms to date. Google’s investment in Anthropic is now worth a significant amount more than the company’s latest funding round, valuing Anthropic at $61.5 billion.
Despite the scrutiny and controversy surrounding these investments, Anthropic continues to work with Google and Amazon, purchasing computing power from them to build its A.I. systems. The company’s cooperation with its investors highlights the complex relationships and financial ties between big tech and A.I. start-ups in the quest for technological advancement.
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