At Least 95 Investors Back Anthropic and OpenAI as AI Race Rewrites VC Rules
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 3
At Least 95 Investors Back Anthropic and OpenAI as AI Race Rewrites VC Rules
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 3
Summary
At least 95 investors have put money into both Anthropic and OpenAI ahead of their expected IPOs, an unusually broad overlap for two direct AI rivals.
Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, Coatue Management and Altimeter are among the firms backing both, reflecting a rush to secure exposure to whichever company becomes the next big winner.
That dual-backing strategy breaks with a long-standing venture capital norm of choosing one startup per emerging category and avoiding direct competitor conflicts.
The shift shows how the AI boom has concentrated Silicon Valley's bets around a handful of companies that investors see as potential $2 trillion businesses.