Quick overview

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The race to dominate artificial intelligence reached a new milestone this week as Anthropic, the startup behind the Claude AI model, closed a massive $65 billion funding round that pushed its valuation to $965 billion — surpassing OpenAI for the first time.

The deal, announced Thursday, was led by major investors including Altimeter Capital, Dragoneer, Greenoaks, and Sequoia Capital. Firms such as D. E. Shaw & Co., Blackstone Inc., and DST Global also participated, underscoring continued investor enthusiasm for generative AI companies.

Anthropic’s explosive rise

The fundraising process moved quickly. According to reports from Bloomberg News, Anthropic had already begun exploring a new capital raise in late April after receiving proposals valuing the company above $900 billion. Negotiations accelerated rapidly throughout May.

Founded in 2021 by former OpenAI researchers, Anthropic has emerged as one of the leading players in the AI ecosystem. Its Claude platform has gained traction particularly among enterprise clients, with products focused on coding, automation, analytics, and cybersecurity.

The company’s financial growth has also accelerated sharply. Bloomberg reported that Anthropic expects to generate approximately $10.9 billion in revenue during the second quarter of the year, more than double the previous quarter’s figure. The startup is also reportedly on track to post its first profitable quarter.

Anthropic has additionally told investors that its annualized revenue run rate could exceed $50 billion by the end of next month — a dramatic increase compared with roughly $4 billion in July last year.

Competition with OpenAI intensifies

The latest funding round significantly raises the stakes in the rivalry with OpenAI, which was valued at $852 billion during a separate fundraising round earlier this year.

According to reports, the company behind ChatGPT is also preparing preliminary documentation for a potential IPO in the coming weeks.

Anthropic’s soaring valuation reflects the extraordinary momentum behind the AI sector, as venture capital firms, institutional investors, and major technology companies continue pouring record amounts of capital into businesses developing advanced AI models.

OpenAI’s own funding surge

OpenAI completed its latest funding round in April, raising approximately $122 billion and reaching a valuation of $852 billion in a deal backed by major technology investors including Amazon, NVIDIA, and SoftBank Group.

The funding injection marked another major leap for the creator of ChatGPT and reinforced the ongoing investment frenzy surrounding generative AI.

OpenAI’s growth has accelerated dramatically in recent months. In March 2025, the company raised $40 billion at a valuation of around $300 billion. The latest round nearly tripled that figure in just over a year.

Among the largest contributors, Amazon reportedly committed $50 billion, while NVIDIA and SoftBank each pledged approximately $30 billion. Microsoft, OpenAI’s long-standing strategic partner, also maintained its participation in the round.