Salesforce and Seven Other Firms Hold Stakes in Potential $2 Trillion AI Startup Anthropic

Anthropic, the artificial intelligence startup, is reportedly targeting a valuation near $2 trillion and a fundraising round exceeding $86 billion for an initial public offering expected as soon as mid-October. As retail investors are unable to purchase Anthropic stock directly, the article identifies eight publicly traded companies that have already invested in the firm.

Amazon.com Inc. is noted as Anthropic's largest backer, having committed up to $33 billion total. This includes a fresh $5 billion tranche tied to an April 2026 agreement in which Anthropic agreed to spend more than $100 billion on Amazon Web Services cloud technology over the next decade. Alphabet Inc. has invested $13.3 billion since late 2022 and committed up to $40 billion more in cash and Google Cloud TPU capacity. Microsoft Corp. committed up to $5 billion in November 2025 alongside a new Azure compute partnership.

NVIDIA Corp. pledged up to $10 billion in a deal that helped push Anthropic’s valuation toward $350 billion at the time. Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) has invested through Salesforce Ventures in every Anthropic round since 2023, starting with roughly $50 million. The article states the stake is now worth about $5.1 billion, with a $2.6 billion unrealized gain contributing $2.53 to adjusted earnings per share in Salesforce's fiscal second quarter report.

Zoom Communications (NASDAQ: ZM) holds a stake valued at approximately $3.13 billion, originating from a $97 million bet placed via Zoom Ventures in May 2023. SK Telecom Co Ltd (NYSE: SKM) has seen its original $100 million investment grow into a stake worth roughly $2.5 billion, with management adding to the position in 2026. ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW) joined Anthropic’s $13 billion Series F in September 2025 and followed up with a January 2026 partnership embedding Claude into its workflow-automation platform.

The article notes that none of these companies are pure plays, as Anthropic exposure is diluted within the larger businesses. The valuations of these stakes are marked to private funding rounds rather than a public market, and Anthropic’s executives have not confirmed a listing valuation.