AI billionaires poised to unleash US$100b philanthropy wave, but who benefits?

A new wave of American philanthropy, estimated to reach US$100 billion, is emerging from the wealth generated by artificial intelligence companies. Anthropic, an AI company, has pledged 5% of its shares to a new Anthropic Public Benefit Fund, which could be worth around US$100 billion if the company reaches a valuation of US$2 trillion.

Its seven co-founders have pledged to give away 80% of their equity, and a program that matches employees' donations will further contribute to public-benefit purposes. Michael Moody, a professor of philanthropy, calls this one of the biggest stories in corporate philanthropy ever. The OpenAI Foundation, which controls OpenAI, holds a 26% stake in the company, more than the endowment of the Gates Foundation.

Effective altruism, a movement that favors measurable impact causes, has influenced many donors. However, Anthropic has stated that the fund's equity will not be used for political giving and will report on its activities. The charities best positioned to benefit are those with existing relationships with the newly wealthy. Elon Musk, the world's richest person, criticized Anthropic's approach, suggesting that shares should be given directly to the public.

Musk himself pledged one of his SpaceX shares to every American child, a gift worth about US$10.5 billion.