Anthropic Plans to Commit 5% Stake to Public-Benefit Fund to Address AI Job Disruption

Anthropic plans to contribute part of its equity to a public-benefit fund as it seeks to address labor-market changes and broader social risks tied to the spread of artificial intelligence.

Bloomberg reported on October 18 that Anthropic will allocate 5% of its total equity to a newly created Anthropic Public Benefit Fund and use it to help mitigate AI’s impact on society.

The fund will support public-interest initiatives, including efforts to address labor-market disruption caused by AI adoption. Anthropic expects the fund to give the company a new way to pursue its public-benefit goals outside its existing business operations.

The fund will be set up as a limited liability company wholly owned by Anthropic rather than as a nonprofit. After shareholder approval, the company will first allocate 5% of its total equity. The board will then have discretion to contribute an additional 2% stake each time the company’s valuation rises 50% above a set threshold. Shares held by the fund will not be used for lobbying or political donations in the U.S. or other countries.

Anthropic’s move comes ahead of a planned initial public offering, as concern grows over AI’s social impact. The company behind Claude could begin formally marketing the IPO to investors as early as the week beginning November 9 and is seeking a stock-market listing before the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, Bloomberg reported.

As companies step up adoption of AI agents that can perform tasks now handled by humans, job losses, cybersecurity and other side effects of technological progress have emerged as key issues. International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva has also said AI could deliver a gradual but broad shock to low-wage labor markets.

Debate over AI safety regulation is also continuing. President Donald Trump met in September with Silicon Valley executives, including Anthropic Chief Executive Officer Dario Amodei, to discuss ways to manage AI risks. At the time, the U.S. government and the industry agreed on a framework centered on safety assessments by outside auditors and stronger internal controls, rather than introducing new federal regulations.

Anthropic recently presented the U.S. Congress with its own draft legislation on AI safety and security regulation. The proposal would allow the government to block the release of AI models if they posed a risk of causing more than 50 deaths or injuries or more than $1 billion in damage.

Anthropic has also clashed with the U.S. government over the scope of military uses of AI technology, though tensions with the White House have recently eased, the report said. As it pursues an IPO, the company is also expanding its response to AI’s social impact through the creation of the public-benefit fund and measures to strengthen safety.