Musk and Anthropic pledge public share giveaways

Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX and artificial intelligence firm xAI, has announced that he will be giving one of his shares in SpaceX to every child in America next year. This pledge comes as Big Tech firms face increasing scrutiny over the potential implications of AI on humanity.

In response to Anthropic's commitment of 5% of its shares to a fund for the public good, Musk suggested giving the shares directly to the public. Anthropic, the company behind the AI model Claude, stated that none of the shares in its Public Benefit Fund would be used for lobbying or political donations. The fund could potentially acquire an additional 2% of the company's shares at its board's discretion.

In the previous quarter, Anthropic's revenue grew by 45% to $16.8 billion. As the AI industry continues to grow and raise concerns about its impact on society and jobs, companies are seeking to position themselves for potential billions in profits. Concerns about AI's implications have been growing, with a former Anthropic researcher warning about the potential dangers of rapid advancements in the technology.

The pledge from Musk and Anthropic comes amidst calls for AI development to slow down and be regulated, with industry leaders like Sam Altman and Elon Musk agreeing with these proposals.