Google Cloud Invests IDR 4.5 Trillion in Artificial Intelligence Startup, Anthropic

Google Cloud has reportedly invested 300 million US dollars (IDR 4.5 trillion) into artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic. (photo: twitter @AnthropicAI)

JAKARTA - Google Cloud has reportedly invested USD 300 million (IDR 4.5 trillion) into artificial intelligence (AI) startup Anthropic, which also received funding of more than USD 500 million (IDR 7.5 trillion) from the former CEO of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, about six months before FTX went bankrupt.

The figure is 300 million US dollars as reported by the Financial Times on February 4. Anthropic confirmed an investment partnership with Google Cloud on the same day, although it did not disclose numbers.

In the same announcement, Anthropic also confirmed that they previously raised capital from Bankman-Fried and former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison, among others, in a Series B fundraising round.

“The Series B round was led by Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of FTX. The round also saw the participation of Caroline Ellison, Jim McClave, Nishad Singh, Jaan Tallinn, and the Center for Emerging Risk Research (CERR)," said Anthropic, quoted by Cointelegraph.

According to Crunchbase, the Bankman-Fried-led fundraising effort is taking place in April 2022.

We're excited to use Google Cloud to train our AI systems, including Claude! https://t.co/IaqQ5lpJrP https://t.co/vOn5Cj4sPt

— Anthropic (@AnthropicAI) February 3, 2023

A recent post by The New York Times reported that of the USD 580 million raised, around USD 530 million came from Bankman-Fried and his former business partners. But some sources believe the figure is even higher.

One of FTX's creditors believes Bankman-Fried's stake in the AI ​​firm could reach $1.1 billion. However, the creditor did not specify the figure.

Other members of the Crypto Twitter community are also speculating whether Bankman-Fried's shares will be used to pay off the huge debts that FTX has accumulated from their recent controversy.

Regarding the partnership, Anthropic will now use Google Cloud's GPU and TPU cluster to train, extend, and implement its AI chatbox, which it calls "Claude" — similar to OpenAI's ChatGTP. Google Cloud itself received about a 10% stake in Anthropic, according to the Financial Times.

While it remains to be seen where most of the debt in the FTX bankruptcy case will come from, Bankman-Fried has personally pleaded not guilty to the eight fraud and conspiracy-based charges filed against him on January 11. 3.

Bankman-Fried currently remains under house arrest at his parents' home in California until his trial date, which is set for October 2, 2023.