AI companies are hoping to paint over their PR problems with some good ol’ fashioned philanthropy.
What happened: Anthropic has pledged to donate 5% of the company’s shares to a new public benefit fund focused on mitigating some of the negative impacts of AI. The fund, which would be worth ~US$100 billion at Anthropic’s targeted IPO valuation, would make direct donations to non-profits as well as populations most affected by the technology.
Not one to be upstaged, Elon Musk made a pledge soon after this announcement to donate one share of SpaceX to each child in the U.S. next year (a US$11 billion gift at the company’s current stock price).
Rival OpenAI has also held discussions to give away a 5% stake in the company to the U.S. government, positioning it as a way to share the wealth of the AI boom with the public.
Why it matters: Between doomsday warnings and job displacement fears, public perception of AI isn’t exactly positive at the moment. Top labs like Anthropic are now trying to quell some of that backlash with some sweeping philanthropic promises.
Trying to mitigate job displacement will likely be at the centre of these charitable efforts. Anthropic has said as much and has already committed $200 million to research and address labour market disruption.
Big picture: AI companies are positioned to be the driving forces of philanthropy over the next decade, and will have an outsized impact on the causes they deem worthy of their capital. Based on Anthropic’s current pledges and employee donation matching program, the company could soon become one of the world’s largest charitable vehicles.—LA
