How to Buy Anthropic Stock Pre-IPO | The Motley Fool
Anthropic is one of the hottest artificial intelligence (AI) start-ups, having raised a significant $7.3 billion in the past year. The company, which was founded in 2021, boasts a diverse group of early investors from the tech and venture capital sectors. Backed by former OpenAI employees, Anthropic has developed the AI chatbot Claude, which competes with OpenAI's popular ChatGPT. The company's latest model, Claude 3 Opus, has outperformed OpenAI's GPT-4 in various areas such as reasoning, math, and coding.
Investing in Anthropic
As of mid-2024, Anthropic remains a privately held company, with venture capital funds and technology giants as its owners. Notable investors include Salesforce, Alphabet, Google, and Amazon. While Anthropic has not announced plans for an initial public offering (IPO) yet, it has successfully raised billions in private markets, allowing it to focus on research and development and business expansion.
Since Anthropic is a private company, buying its shares through a brokerage account is not an option for most investors. However, accredited investors may have the opportunity to purchase shares of pre-IPO companies on secondary marketplaces like Forge Global and Hiive. Alternatively, non-accredited investors can gain exposure to Anthropic by investing in funds like the Fundrise Innovation Fund or the Ark Venture Fund, both of which hold shares in private technology companies, including Anthropic.
Investing in Early Anthropic Backers
Investors interested in companies that have invested in Anthropic can explore opportunities to buy shares in Amazon, Alphabet, and Salesforce. These companies have made significant investments in Anthropic, providing indirect exposure to the AI start-up. For example, Amazon's investment includes utilizing AWS services to support Anthropic's AI technology development.
Research and Investing
Prior to investing in Anthropic or its backers, it's essential to conduct thorough research on the companies and their competitors. Understanding how these companies generate revenue, their financial performance, and their market position is crucial for making informed investment decisions. Additionally, setting a budget and diversifying your portfolio are key aspects of a sound investing strategy, as recommended by The Motley Fool's investing philosophy.
Buying Shares
Once you have researched and planned your investments, the process of buying shares is relatively straightforward through a brokerage account. Investors can follow similar steps to purchase shares of Anthropic's leading investors or participate in IPOs when available. While Anthropic's financial results are not publicly disclosed due to its private status, reports suggest significant revenue growth potential despite concerns about profitability and margins.
