Venture capital firms backing Anthropic could earn billions if the AI company goes public, but Amazon's investments and cloud partnership may give it an even larger financial stake in the outcome.
Anthropic's SEC registration statement shows that no individual venture firm owns 5% or more, a threshold for inclusion in its principal stockholders' table. The company's reported private valuation of $965 billion means even a small ownership share can represent substantial value.
Amazon's investment structure
Amazon began investing in Anthropic in 2023. Much of its early backing took the form of convertible notes, which can turn into shares during an IPO or sale. As of June 30, the notes had $6.2 billion in principal outstanding. Amazon valued its holdings at $97.9 billion in its own reporting.
The notes could convert into as many as 1.84 billion shares, subject to a cap limiting Amazon to 12% of Anthropic's partially diluted share count. Amazon also invested $10 billion in nonvoting preferred stock across the company's two most recent funding rounds. Together with its earlier note investments, its total investment is about $18 billion.
The partnership extends beyond equity. Anthropic has committed to spend at least $110 billion on Amazon Web Services over the next decade, creating a significant long-term commercial relationship alongside Amazon's potential IPO gains.
For Anthropic, the rising estimated value of the convertible notes has also affected its accounts: the company recorded a $72.4 billion non-cash adjustment related to notes and other instruments in the first half of 2026.
Amazon's position illustrates how AI companies' strategic investors can benefit both from ownership and from supplying the computing infrastructure those companies need. As the AI sector matures, these intertwined investments and cloud partnerships may increasingly shape how its leading firms grow.
