Update from 27. December 2023:
Anthropic expects to generate over $850 million in annualized revenue by the end of 2024, a significant increase from its previous projection of $500 million, The Information reports. This revised forecast underscores the company's rapid growth and the growing interest in generative AI among enterprises.
OpenAI's CEO drama with the ouster of Sam Altman may have helped that revenue forecast: Over the weekend when Altman was fired, more than 100 OpenAI customers reportedly contacted Anthropic looking for a backup or more reliable alternative partner.
Anthropic generates revenue by selling Claude through a web interface and an API. The language model generates and analyzes text. The company's revenue forecast calls for it to make at least $70 million a month by the end of next year, more than eight times its monthly revenue in September 2021, according to The Information. Menlo is leading Anthropic's funding through a special-purpose vehicle.
OpenAI is also reportedly raising money but at an even higher valuation of $100 billion. While this is also a very lofty multiple, OpenAI at least owns the largest AI brand to date with ChatGPT, and its underlying models power large parts of the AI ecosystem.
Article from 21. December 2023:
OpenAI competitor Anthropic seeks $15 billion valuation in new funding round
AI startup Anthropic is in talks to raise $750 million in a funding round led by Menlo Ventures, valuing the company at $15 billion, excluding the investment. The final valuation could exceed $18 billion. Anthropic, a rival to OpenAI and creator of the Claude chatbot, has secured commitments from major cloud providers, including Amazon and Google. The startup plans to spend billions on renting servers from these providers to train and power its large language model. Menlo Ventures is expected to invest between $400 million and $500 million in the round. Other investors in Anthropic include Spark Capital, Salesforce, and Sound Ventures.
