Anthropic Raises $65 Billion, Valuation Nears $100 Billion, Surpassing OpenAI as Most Valuable AI Company

On May 28, a Taiwanese independent developer who uses the Claude API for customer service robots was bombarded with group messages - the company he subscribed to and invested in, Anthropic, had become the most valuable AI startup in the world overnight. He sent a message to the group, saying, "Are we on the right side?" This half-joking remark actually touched on the power shift happening in the entire industry.

On that day, Anthropic announced the completion of a $65 billion Series H funding round, with a post-investment valuation of $965 billion, approaching the $1 trillion mark. This number officially surpassed OpenAI, which had long been the leader.

Event Background

Anthropic is the Claude developer, founded by several researchers who left OpenAI in 2021. It has been emphasizing the "safe and controllable" AI route, which has been well-received by enterprise customers. Over the past year, its valuation has skyrocketed, from the initial number to the current level, driven by the adoption of its models by enterprise customers.

In contrast, OpenAI had just completed its own large-scale funding round, with a valuation of approximately $852 billion. The two companies were initially neck and neck, but Anthropic's $965 billion valuation has opened up a gap, symbolizing a significant shift: this is the first time Claude has overtaken ChatGPT in terms of "market value".

Key Points

• Funding amount: $65 billion: The Series H round was jointly led by several top venture capital firms and capital groups, including prior commitments of massive strategic investments, with cloud giants like Amazon also participating.
• Post-investment valuation: $965 billion: Surpassing OpenAI's approximately $852 billion, becoming the most valuable AI company in Silicon Valley.
• Annual revenue: approximately $47 billion: Since the last round in February, the adoption of its models by enterprise customers has continued to expand, with significant growth in revenue run-rate - a key factor in supporting its valuation.
• Preparing for IPO: Anthropic has secretly submitted its IPO draft, which may be listed as early as this autumn, potentially overtaking OpenAI in the race to go public.

Market Impact Analysis

For Taiwanese users: In the short term, there will be no immediate changes when using Claude, but the long-term implications of "more money and going public" are significant - more abundant funds will lead to faster model iteration, more stable services, and more aggressive commercialization. In simpler terms, Claude will likely become more user-friendly, but users should also be aware of potential adjustments to free quotas and subscription plans for revenue purposes.

For enterprise applications: This is a reassuring signal for Taiwanese enterprise users. Many companies fear "betting on the wrong supplier and the company going bankrupt in two years". Anthropic becoming the most valuable and preparing to go public reduces the risk of tying core processes to Claude. Additionally, its consistent emphasis on security and compliance is particularly appealing to conservative industries like finance and healthcare.

For developers: With an annual revenue of $47 billion and the pressure to grow after going public, Anthropic will likely push harder for API and enterprise products. Teams developing with Claude can expect more complete toolchains and enterprise-level features, but should also consider potential price adjustments due to commercialization. A multi-supplier strategy - simultaneously supporting Claude, Gemini, and GPT - is still a stable approach, and it's not wise to put all eggs in one basket.

Future Development Trends

The true focus of this funding round is the AI industry's competition shifting from "whose model is smarter" to "whose business can grow bigger and last longer". A valuation nearing $1 trillion and preparing for an IPO represents the market beginning to evaluate these AI labs based on their ability to become profitable companies, rather than just looking at benchmark scores.

The next thing to watch is whether Anthropic's IPO will really precede OpenAI's, and how this money will be spent - on larger models, stronger computing power, or deeper enterprise integration. As the two companies compete, the ultimate beneficiaries will be the users: the more intense the competition, the faster the models will progress, and the more pressure there will be to lower prices.

TheAI Academy Summary and Commentary

The numbers are astonishing, but don't be blinded by the valuation. $965 billion is "the market's bet on the future", not what Anthropic is actually worth today - especially in the money-burning AI industry, it's essential to keep a clear head. The real signal is its $47 billion annual revenue, representing that this is not just a bubble propped up by stories, but has actual enterprise customers paying for its services.

For Taiwanese individual and enterprise users, the practical significance of this news is not "go buy Claude", but "the horse you're betting on is running in the front and has plenty of fuel" - you can more confidently include it in your long-term toolset, but don't forget to reserve the flexibility to switch.

My simple advice is: if you haven't seriously used Claude before, this is a good reason to try its long-text processing and programming capabilities; if you're already using it, this news gives you a reassurance, not a ticket to go all-in.

Data Sources

• Anthropic official announcement: Series H funding
• CNBC: Anthropic surpasses OpenAI as most valuable AI startup
• TechCrunch: Anthropic raises $65 billion, nears $1 trillion valuation ahead of IPO

(This article is compiled based on publicly available information, with official announcements as the primary source. The estimates and funding figures mentioned do not constitute investment advice.)