Anthropic’s founders are asking shareholders to approve a governance structure in the coming days that would let them keep voting control after the artificial intelligence company goes public. Under the proposal, reported by The Information, CEO Dario Amodei and his six co-founders would receive special shares carrying a combined 50.1% of the vote on most corporate matters. The arrangement would remain in effect only if at least three of the seven founders maintain a minimum stake.
The plan is a group variation on a familiar Silicon Valley tool. Super-voting shares are how Mark Zuckerberg retained control of Meta and how Evan Spiegel kept his hold on Snap. The list is long, according to the report. What stands out about Anthropic’s approach is that it spreads the special voting power across a founding team rather than concentrating it in one person.
The founders each reportedly own just 2% of Anthropic, including Amodei. The new shares would carry no additional economic value, meaning they would not increase the founders’ financial stake. Their purpose is to preserve the group’s control once the company begins trading publicly.
The proposal includes other governance twists. Anthropic’s Long-Term Benefit Trust would still select most of the board, and the number of board seats held by founders would grow from two to three. Employees would also receive their own stock intended to break ties on certain issues.
Anthropic is five years old. The company was valued at $965 billion in May, and it was recently valued at $1.5 trillion on the secondary market. Its upcoming IPO is expected to reflect that newer valuation.
Amodei announced in January that the co-founders had pledged to give away 80% of their wealth. He made that commitment alongside a warning that wealth concentration driven by AI could destabilize society.
The vote comes as Anthropic prepares for a public listing at a valuation far above its May mark. For US public-market investors, the proposal would mean buying into a company whose founders would retain a controlling bloc on most matters, even though their combined economic ownership is small.
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