Four pages of questions target safety, partners and valuation
In a letter sent Tuesday and viewed by The Wall Street Journal, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, said she was “deeply troubled” by the risks Anthropic raised in its initial-public-offering paperwork that week. She asked Anthropic Chief Executive Dario Amodei for “exhaustive responses” to four pages of questions no later than Nov. 3.
Warren said the risks posed by Anthropic’s AI technology “demand greater scrutiny before they become intertwined with the public capital markets, which could further escalate both public safety and systemic financial risks.” One question asks how Anthropic can ensure its technology will not cause an existential threat to humanity.
Her questions also seek details about Anthropic’s relationships with Amazon.com and Broadcom and how the company plans to justify a valuation that could approach $2 trillion.
Anthropic’s filing said its technology could transform how people code, conduct research, automate routine tasks and help cure major diseases. At the same time, the company warned that AI could lead to the development of new bioweapons and “destabilize the geopolitical order.”
Anthropic’s Monday filing put the company on track to go public as soon as the week before Thanksgiving. The Wall Street Journal reported that Anthropic could raise as much as $100 billion in what could be the biggest initial public offering of all time.
The Wall Street Journal said Warren’s letter was unlikely to have a major effect on Anthropic’s plans given high investor demand for the stock. Anthropic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Warren’s inquiry was not her first public challenge involving Anthropic or a major technology offering. She met with Amodei in Washington earlier this year and is among the lawmakers who have called on the industry to slow the development of advanced AI to allow for stronger regulation.
Ahead of SpaceX’s June offering, Warren urged the Securities and Exchange Commission to delay the rocket maker’s IPO. She cited SpaceX’s high valuation, corporate governance structure and recent index-rule changes; the offering went ahead as planned.