Anthropic Explores $5 Billion Funding to Hit $150 Billion Valuation

* Anthropic in early talks for $3 billion to $5 billion funding round. * Potential Middle Eastern backing sparks internal ethical concerns. On July 26, 2025, reports revealed that leading artificial intelligence startup Anthropic is discussing a new funding round of between $3 billion and $5 billion. This move, which could boost its valuation from $61.5 billion to over $150 billion, is aimed at strengthening the company's position in the fiercely competitive generative AI market against rivals like OpenAI and xAI. According to the reports on July 26, the talks have attracted interest from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds, including MGX, an Abu Dhabi-based AI-focused investment entity. A fund linked to MGX notably acquired $500 million of Anthropic shares previously held by the defunct crypto exchange FTX. This potential capital inflow underscores the intense financial demands of staying at the forefront of AI innovation and scalability in an industry increasingly dominated by well-funded players. However, leaked internal communications reveal controversy surrounding this development. In the memo, CEO Dario Amodei addressed the ethical dilemma of accepting investments from organizations tied to authoritarian regimes. Although Anthropic has historically avoided direct funding from such sources, Amodei hinted at a strategic pivot, given the scale of available Middle Eastern capital. In the leaked internal communications, CEO Dario Amodei stated, "There is a truly giant amount of capital in the Middle East, easily $100 billion or more...If we want to stay on the frontier, we gain a very large benefit from having access to this capital." Anthropic's annualized recurring revenue has shown impressive growth, climbing from $1 billion at the start of 2025 to over $4 billion. Despite this growth, the company remains unprofitable as high operating costs for computing infrastructure and talent acquisition continue to pressure its margins. This financial pressure persists despite prominent backers like Amazon and Google, and Amazon is also reportedly exploring an increase to its $8 billion commitment to the company.