Anthropic is reportedly working on a plan that would allow certain employees to sell their shares in the company at a valuation of at least $350 billion, according to a person familiar with the situation. This initiative is being developed at the same time as a funding round that could bring in more than $20 billion, potentially making it one of the largest financing events in the artificial intelligence sector.
Through this proposed tender offer, employees would have the opportunity to liquidate a portion of their holdings in one of the world’s most valuable AI companies. The source explained that the $350 billion valuation being discussed is a pre-money figure, which means it does not include the funds that the company is planning to raise in the ongoing funding round. This pre-money valuation is the same one that is being considered in Anthropic’s current fundraising discussions.
Anthropic has declined to comment publicly on the initiative.
The move comes amid a broader trend of large private technology companies offering secondary share sales to employees as a way to provide liquidity while remaining private. Such transactions have become increasingly common as startups aim to retain talent in highly competitive markets, particularly in the artificial intelligence space. These secondary share sales allow employees to access the value of their stock without the company needing to go public, which can help attract and retain key talent while maintaining control over strategic direction.
Several high-profile companies have conducted similar arrangements in recent years. SpaceX and Stripe, for example, have executed multiple secondary share sales for employees. Anthropic’s main competitor, OpenAI, has also engaged in such transactions regularly; in October, OpenAI completed a $6.6 billion secondary share sale at a valuation of $500 billion. Both SpaceX and OpenAI have recently taken steps that suggest a potential move toward public offerings in the future.
According to reports, Anthropic’s plan is designed specifically to allow certain employees to cash out some of their stock holdings through this tender offer while the company simultaneously pursues its large funding round. The tender offer and fundraising are happening concurrently, indicating that the company is seeking to balance liquidity for employees with raising substantial new capital to support its growth and operations.
This tender offer is being viewed as part of a broader shift in the AI industry, where the most valuable companies are staying private longer while offering employees avenues to realize gains from their equity.
These initiatives are increasingly important in the competitive AI talent market, where companies must balance employee incentives, company valuation, and strategic growth without going public prematurely.
