The Information via TechCrunch and Reuters — Anthropic is asking shareholders to approve special shares that would give CEO Dario Amodei and six co-founders a combined 50.1% vote on most corporate matters ahead of a public listing.
Anthropic is asking shareholders to approve, “in the coming days,” a structure that would give CEO Dario Amodei and his six co-founders special shares carrying a combined 50.1% of the vote on most corporate matters, as long as at least three of them keep a minimum stake, TechCrunch reported on September 25, 2026, summarizing The Information. CNBC TV18, citing Reuters’ paraphrase of the same report, said the arrangement emulates Palantir’s founder-control model; TechCrunch also compared the move to Meta and Snap super-voting precedents, noting what is unusual is the group approach.
The special shares carry no extra economic value; they are meant to preserve the founders’ control once the company starts trading publicly, TechCrunch said. The seven co-founders reportedly own about 2% of the company apiece, Amodei included, and have pledged to give away 80% of their wealth — a commitment Amodei announced in January alongside a warning about AI-driven wealth concentration, according to TechCrunch.
One significant exception is board elections. Anthropic’s Long-Term Benefit Trust would still choose most of the board; founders’ board seats would grow from two to three; and employees would get special stock as tie-breakers on some issues, TechCrunch and CNBC TV18 both reported. CNBC TV18 added that the board has seven seats, one currently vacant.
Valuation context: Anthropic was valued at $965 billion post-money in its May raise (CNBC TV18: raised $65 billion at that figure). TechCrunch said the company was recently valued at $1.5 trillion on the secondary market, with the upcoming IPO expected to reflect that. CNBC TV18, citing earlier Reuters reporting, said Anthropic may push its IPO until after the November U.S. midterms. Anthropic did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, CNBC TV18 said.
The control plan sits beside AI Tech Daily’s earlier coverage of Nvidia as a possible Anthropic IPO anchor and today’s live appeals ruling on the Pentagon blacklist. This brief is the founder-vote structure only — not a priced IPO or a confirmed board slate.
Sources
- https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/25/anthropics-founders-seek-voting-control-ahead-of-ipo/
- https://www.cnbctv18.com/market/anthropic-seeks-50-1-voting-control-for-co-founders-ahead-of-ipo-the-information-reports-19998181.htm
- https://www.aitechdaily.com/nvidia-anthropic-ipo-anchor/
- https://www.aitechdaily.com/anthropic-pentagon-appeals-court-blacklist/