News & Updates
The latest news and updates from companies in the WLTH portfolio.
Anthropic's Claude Duet Challenges Meta, OpenAI in AI Agent Race
Claude Duet automates tasks across 6,000 platforms with safety checks, available in U.S. Following Meta and OpenAI, Anthropic has also unveiled a personal AI agent that performs tasks on behalf of users. Anthropic publicly released a research preview version of its AI agent 'Claude Duet,' developed based on the AI model 'Claude Opus 5.5,' on the 22nd (local time). Claude Duet is a service that autonomously identifies and performs necessary tasks by examining integrated data and applications (apps) without requiring repeated user instructions. Anthropic explained that it was developed to assist professionals and small business owners who struggle with managing schedules and various tasks due to heavy workloads. Users can receive daily briefings summarizing key information through Claude Duet or instruct it to check emails and messengers to send necessary messages. A notable feature is that it continues tasks on a separate virtual computer even when the user is away or shuts down their computer. The service can integrate with over 6,000 platforms, including Google Gmail, the business messenger Slack, the social networking service (SNS) LinkedIn, the payment platform Stripe, and the e-commerce platform Shopify. It also supports direct payment for goods using the digital wallets of Stripe and Shopify. Anthropic has implemented safety measures given the AI agent's increased autonomy. Before performing sensitive tasks such as sending emails, making payments, signing documents, or deleting files, it must obtain explicit user approval. High-risk operations like securities trading or fund transfers are restricted, even if approved by the user. Requests to share highly sensitive information, such as credit card numbers and identification numbers, with external parties are automatically denied. Health and financial information is designed to be transmitted only upon explicit user instruction. However, Anthropic acknowledged that, being in an early development stage, Claude Duet may misinterpret user intentions or misjudge the urgency of tasks. Claude Duet is available on the Claude website and iOS and Android apps. It is currently accepting applications from subscribers to paid plans of over 20 dollars per month within the U.S. Previously, Meta introduced the personal AI agent 'Muse,' and OpenAI unveiled 'Dots.' Meta's Muse garnered attention, recording millions of downloads shortly after its release.
Anthropic CEO Defends Safety via Tech Leadership
Amodei argues leading AI development elevates industry standards despite criticism over accelerated projects Dario Amodei, Anthropic's CEO who has advocated for slowing the pace of artificial intelligence (AI) development, has rebutted criticism that the company's massive investments and accelerated development contradict its safety principles. He argued that companies developing technology safely must lead in cutting-edge competition to raise industry-wide safety standards. By emphasizing safety as the reason to both slow AI development and maintain a competitive edge, Amodei framed safety as the core justification for Anthropic's strategy. Amodei posted on social media X on October 20, local time, stating, "Our strategy has always been a 'race to the top,'" adding, "By demonstrating responsible technology development, we can elevate industry standards." He emphasized, "The impact is far greater when the company executing this is at the forefront of technology." The logic is that if safety-focused firms lead technologically, others will follow. The post was a response to criticism from Nathan Calvin, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of AI safety nonprofit EncodeAI. In September, Amodei had proposed slowing the improvement of AI model capabilities. However, Calvin highlighted nine instances where Anthropic allegedly accelerated AI development despite its safety stance, including a contract securing over 500 billion dollars in computing resources and increased use of its AI, Claude, in next-generation model development. Calvin argued that Anthropic prioritizes accelerating AI development while publicly emphasizing safety. Amodei also claimed Anthropic sacrificed business interests for safety. He noted that while the company secured a Mythos-class model in February, it delayed its public release until June to strengthen cybersecurity measures. "Economically, releasing the model immediately would have been far more rational," he said, adding, "We likely sacrificed a significant portion of our model's lead over several months." He acknowledged that strict restrictions to prevent biological weapon misuse have caused the company to miss out on legitimate biological research demand but stated, "It's the right thing to do, and we will continue." Amodei did not retract the need for slowing development entirely. Regarding the challenge of safety measures lagging behind AI acceleration, he said, "We are nearing that point, which is driving discussions about 'speed moderation.'" However, he did not specify when or by how much Anthropic would slow its development. The debate emerged as Anthropic prepares for a large-scale initial public offering (IPO). The company is expected to list next month with a valuation of 2 trillion dollars. It recently announced third-quarter revenue of 16.8 billion dollars.
OpenAI Seeks $30 Billion Before Anthropic IPO
OpenAI targets $1.4 trillion valuation, racing to secure funds before rival's market debut OpenAI is accelerating efforts to secure investments worth approximately 30 billion dollars (about 40.3 trillion Korean won) ahead of rival Anthropic's initial public offering (IPO). On October 19 (local time), Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter, that OpenAI is pushing to raise large-scale funding before Anthropic's listing. In this investment round, OpenAI's valuation is expected to exceed 1.4 trillion dollars (about 1,880 trillion Korean won). This represents a more than 60% increase from its previous valuation of 852 billion dollars (about 1,144 trillion Korean won), recognized after raising 122 billion dollars in March. OpenAI aims to secure investment commitments before Anthropic lists on the stock market in mid-November. As both companies are targeting similar investor groups for funding, the move is seen as a strategy to preemptively secure capital ahead of Anthropic's IPO. Existing investors, including SoftBank Group and Abu Dhabi's MGX, are reportedly in discussions to participate in this funding round. OpenAI is said to have met with representatives from long-term investment funds and sovereign wealth funds last week, when Anthropic held investor presentations. While demand for investments in both companies remains high, investors face the challenge of allocating capital amid large-scale funding rounds occurring within days or weeks of each other. Some investors view OpenAI's move as an attempt to secure funds that could otherwise flow into Anthropic's IPO. OpenAI reportedly informed investors that its growth has accelerated since the launch of the GPT-6 Astra model. According to sources familiar with the matter, OpenAI's annualized revenue currently stands at 50 billion dollars (about 67.1 trillion Korean won) and is projected to reach 70 billion dollars (about 94 trillion Korean won) by year-end. Another source indicated that OpenAI aims to finalize its funding before Anthropic's financial details are disclosed post-IPO, allowing direct comparisons between the two companies' performances. The companies are also clashing over revenue calculation methods. OpenAI has criticized Anthropic for inflating its performance by recognizing the total value of contracts sold through third-party cloud providers as revenue. Anthropic maintains that it follows established accounting practices. Anthropic's revenue increased from 11.6 billion dollars in the second quarter to 16.8 billion dollars in the third quarter of this year. However, concerns about its valuation have emerged as monthly revenue growth has slowed. Some investors reportedly suggest that Anthropic's IPO valuation should be set at 1.5 trillion dollars, lower than its initial target of 2 trillion dollars. Investor sentiment toward tech stocks remains unstable. Since September, factors such as oil price fluctuations, rising bond yields, and concerns about AI safety have heightened market uncertainty. Consequently, some companies have postponed their IPO plans. These include Airtrunk, backed by Blackstone, Permas, supported by NVIDIA, and SB Energy, sponsored by SoftBank.
Anthropic Contributes 5% Shares to Public Benefit Fund Addressing AI Impact
Fund grows with company, adding 2% shares per 50% value increase to support AI-impacted workers and non-profits Claude developer Anthropic has decided to contribute 5% of its company shares to a newly established public benefit fund. Anthropic announced on October 18, local time, that it will contribute 5% of its shares to the 'Anthropic Public Benefit Fund' following shareholder approval. It has decided to additionally contribute 2% of its shares at the board's discretion every time the company's value increases by 50% above a predetermined baseline. This structure ensures that the portion of shares allocated for public benefit grows as the company expands. Anthropic stated, "This fund can be used for large-scale donations to non-profit organizations or for direct financial support to specific groups," citing the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the labor market as a representative example. Anthropic explained, "While AI can generate immense economic value, it can also destabilize the lives of many workers," adding, "Given the rapid pace of AI development, a more aggressive approach may be necessary, and this public benefit fund provides the flexibility to pursue such initiatives." Previously, Anthropic announced plans to invest 200 million dollars to research the impact of AI on the labor market and respond to it. The fund will be established as a limited liability company (LLC) wholly owned by Anthropic. Anthropic emphasized that the shares held by the fund will not be used for lobbying or political donations in the U.S. or abroad. Anthropic stated, "While it is common practice for tech companies to provide larger-scale stock compensation to executives, we have decided to allocate those shares for public benefit." Adding the co-founders' pledge to donate 80% of their shares and the employee share donation matching program, approximately 20% of the company's shares will be used for public benefit purposes.
Anthropic Unauthorized Use of Korean Authors' Works for AI Training
U.S. AI company settles $1.5B lawsuit; 21 Korean works eligible for compensation U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic has been found to have used works by Korean authors including Han Kang and Hwang Sok-yong for training its AI chatbot 'Claude' without authorization. On October 17, the Literature Translation Institute of Korea confirmed 21 works by Korean authors in the list of books eligible for compensation published on the settlement website related to the copyright infringement lawsuit against Anthropic and notified the authors. Anthropic became entangled in a class-action lawsuit in the U.S. over allegations that it used illegally downloaded books without copyright holders' permission to train its AI model. The lawsuit concluded in July of this year after Anthropic agreed to pay a total settlement of 1.5 billion dollars (approximately 2 trillion Korean won). The eligible books for compensation amount to approximately 500,000 titles, with each work receiving around 3,000 dollars (approximately 4.35 million Korean won). Domestic authors can also receive compensation if they participate in the claims process. Korean authors whose works are included in the compensation list are Kim Ae-ran's *My Brilliant Life*, Kim Young-ha's *Empire of Light* and three others, Kim Soom's *One Person*, Shin Kyung-sook's *Please Look After Mom* and two others, Han Kang's *Human Acts* and two others, Hwang Sun-mi's *The Hen Who Left the Yard*, and Hwang Sok-yong's *Guest*. A source from the Literature Translation Institute of Korea stated, "We will actively support legal measures if necessary, cooperating with copyright-related institutions to ensure authors receive fair compensation." Meanwhile, as overseas AI companies have shown movements to mass-purchase books presumed for AI training, voices demanding copyright protection and fair compensation are growing louder in the publishing industry. The Korean Publishers Association released a statement the previous day, urging AI companies to transparently disclose information about their use of copyrighted works and provide fair compensation. The Korean Publishers Association emphasized, "Without books, there is no AI," adding, "Those who created the books do not even know when, how, or which AI their works are being used in." It further criticized, "Without knowing, they cannot ask questions, refuse, or demand fair compensation."
Anthropic Illegally Downloaded Korean Books for AI
Anthropic's illegal downloads of 22 Korean books led to $1.5B settlement It has been revealed that Anthropic downloaded books from illegal piracy sites for the development of its artificial intelligence (AI) model "Claude," including multiple works by Korean authors such as Nobel Prize in Literature laureate Han Kang. According to the book list published on Anthropic's copyright settlement official website on the 16th, at least 22 works by Korean authors were included among the total 482,460 works subject to the settlement. This includes three works by Nobel Prize in Literature laureate Han Kang, such as "Human Acts," 'The Vegetarian,' and 'White,' four works by Kim Young-ha including 'Your Republic Is Calling You,' and three works by Shin Kyung-sook including 'Please Look After Mom.' Additionally, works by Korean authors such as Hwang Sok-yong and Kim Ae-ran were also confirmed to be included. The books in question were compiled as part of a class-action settlement in the U.S. In 2024, three authors, including Andrea Bartz, the author of the bestselling thriller novel "We Were Not There," filed a class-action lawsuit against Anthropic, alleging that the company unlawfully copied and used their copyrighted works during the development of Claude. During the lawsuit, it was revealed that Anthropic downloaded over 7 million digital copies from illegal book-sharing sites between 2021 and 2022. Anthropic illegally obtained at least 5 million copies from "Library Genesis (LibGen)" in 2021 and at least 2 million copies from "Pirate Library Mirror (PiLiMi)" in 2022. The U.S. court ruled that while the act of using books for AI training itself constitutes "fair use" under copyright law, the act of downloading and storing illegal copies to secure books for training was not recognized as fair use. Consequently, Anthropic agreed to pay the plaintiffs a total of 1.5 billion dollars, approximately 3,000 dollars per book, for around 500,000 illegally copied books. Meanwhile, Anthropic has been securing training materials since 2024 by purchasing and digitizing paper books in bulk. To this end, the company contacted global publishing and distribution companies, and it was reported that Woongjin Booksen, a domestic company, was also included among the partners.
Anthropic's Second Profit Amid Slowing Revenue Growth
AI Firm Targets $2 Trillion Valuation in November IPO as Profitability Outpaces Rival OpenAI Artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic has reported its second consecutive quarterly profit. While its performance continues to grow on expanding enterprise AI demand, the quarterly revenue growth rate has slowed. With a mega initial public offering (IPO) expected next month, maintaining revenue growth while securing profitability will be a key test. According to Bloomberg and the Financial Times, FT, on the 14th (local time), Anthropic announced at a preliminary investor briefing held at its San Francisco headquarters that it recorded $16.8 billion in revenue for the third quarter of this year. This amount is approximately 3.7 times the company's annual revenue of $4.6 billion from last year, achieved in just three months. Profitability has also improved rapidly. Following a shift to operating profit in the second quarter of this year, Anthropic achieved an adjusted operating profit margin of over 11% in the third quarter. Free cash flow (FCF) also turned positive. Considering that the company had an operating loss exceeding $8 billion despite $4.6 billion in annual revenue last year, its profit structure has significantly improved. However, the pace of revenue growth has slowed. Anthropic's quarterly revenue surged by approximately 147% from $4.7 billion in the first quarter to $11.6 billion in the second quarter of this year. However, in the third quarter, it reached $16.8 billion, with the growth rate dropping to 45% compared to the previous quarter. The growth rate fell by over 100 percentage points in just one quarter. U.S. economic media outlet MarketWatch assessed, "Anthropic's slowing revenue growth could serve as a new warning signal for the AI investment frenzy." Anthropic is reportedly set to begin formal investor recruitment for its IPO as early as next month and aims to list before U.S. Thanksgiving on November 26. The target company valuation is over $2 trillion. Anthropic's improved profitability contrasts with rival OpenAI. According to The Wall Street Journal, WSJ, OpenAI saw its second-quarter revenue increase by 18% to $6.7 billion compared to the previous quarter, but its operating loss widened from $9.3 billion in the first quarter to $12.3 billion in the second quarter. Anthropic is focusing on expanding sales of paid services such as coding and task automation for enterprise customers. In contrast, OpenAI is investing heavily in computational costs to expand its user base, serving hundreds of millions of ChatGPT users. This structural difference in business operations is analyzed as leading to the profitability gap. Rival OpenAI has postponed its IPO to next year or later, citing concerns over AI safety.
Anthropic Achieves Profit, $16.8B Q3 Revenue
Aims for $2T Valuation in IPO, Plans AI and Data Center Investments Anthropic, a U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) company pursuing an initial public offering (IPO), recorded Q3 revenue of 16.8 billion dollars, approximately 22.5 trillion Korean won, a 45% increase from the previous quarter. According to Reuters on the 14th (local time), Anthropic disclosed these results at a preliminary investor presentation for the IPO held at its headquarters in San Francisco, U.S. on the same day. The company's revenue grew rapidly from 4.7 billion dollars in Q1 this year to 11.6 billion dollars in Q2 and 16.8 billion dollars in Q3. Notably, the company also achieved a profit on an adjusted operating income basis in Q3 following Q2. This contrasts with last year, when despite recording annual revenue of 4.6 billion dollars, the company posted an operating loss of 8 billion dollars. The disclosure of these results is seen as a move to demonstrate growth potential and profitability to investors ahead of the IPO. Anthropic aims to be valued at over 2 trillion dollars, approximately 2,700 trillion Korean won, during the IPO process. The secured funds are planned to be used for large-scale infrastructure investments, including AI model development and data centers. Anthropic had initially planned to list this month, but with the schedule delayed, the possibility of listing after the U.S. midterm elections in November has grown. OpenAI, which also pursued a listing within the year, has postponed its listing date to next year.
Anthropic Accelerates AI Data Center Expansion with IREN Deal
AI firm's infrastructure to reach 15 GW by 2028, backed by $530 billion investments across 10+ cloud providers Anthropic is accelerating its acquisition of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers by signing a multi-year cloud contract with neocloud company IREN. The Information, a US IT-focused media outlet, reported on the 11th (local time) that Anthropic had finalized the multi-year cloud agreement with IREN. Specific details regarding the contract's scale and duration were not disclosed. In addition to IREN, Anthropic has also secured data center leasing agreements with over 10 cloud providers, including Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google, totaling 15 gigawatts (GW) and approximately 530 billion dollars (around 720 trillion Korean won). As a result, Anthropic's AI computing capacity is projected to grow from 1.4 GW last year to 5 GW this year, 9.5 GW next year, and over 15 GW by 2028. The Information analyzed that Anthropic is rushing to secure and operate data centers because faster server deployment can generate massive revenue. According to estimates by investors and analysts, if Anthropic uses its 245-megawatt (MW) data center in Louisiana entirely for AI answer generation (inference) and begins operations one month earlier than planned, it could generate an additional 1.3 billion dollars (approximately 1.8 trillion Korean won) in revenue. The data center, developed by Hut 8 and operated by Fluidstack, will begin using Google Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) in the second quarter of next year. Infrastructure advisory firm Ocumedge estimated that if Anthropic spends approximately 200 million dollars per month to lease chips at this facility, its gross profit margin could reach 85%. However, this calculation excludes model training costs and labor expenses. The Information reported that based on this profitability, Anthropic recorded a slight profit in the second quarter of this year. Energy analysis firm Royal Powers Energy analyzed that AI inference data centers can remain profitable even at a power cost of 5,631 dollars per megawatt-hour (MWh), which is over 100 times the typical wholesale electricity price. Nevertheless, the cost burden from large-scale server leasing remains a variable. The Information noted that Anthropic's profit margins could narrow as it significantly expands server leasing this year. Additionally, major clients like Microsoft and Meta have reduced spending related to Anthropic, while competition with rivals like OpenAI intensifies.
Anthropic's AI Submits False Murder Tips to Police
Philadelphia Police Criticize Two-Month Delay in Detecting AI-Generated False Tips Anthropic's AI model was found to have generated false tips related to a murder case and submitted them to the police, a fact that came to light only recently. It was reported that Anthropic identified the issue after two months and notified the police. According to Reuters and AFP on the 9th, the Philadelphia National Police Agency revealed that a false tip generated by Anthropic's AI model was submitted to the website "Philly Unsolved Murders," which collects tips on long-unsolved murder cases in the jurisdiction. The website, operated by the Philadelphia Police Department, lists unsolved murder cases, accepts tips related to the cases, and states that a reward of 20,000 dollars will be given to anyone who provides information leading to an arrest. Reports indicated that the AI disguised itself as someone with information about a case and left a false tip. However, the tip was classified as spam and was not forwarded to the actual investigative department. The false tip incident occurred on July 18, and Anthropic discovered it two months later on September 28, halting the model's automated testing process. On October 7, Anthropic notified the Philadelphia National Police Agency of the incident and announced plans to release a report explaining unintended operational cases of its model. No unauthorized access to police systems or data leaks were found. In a statement released on the 9th, the Philadelphia Police Department said, "A two-month delay in detecting and reporting the incident is unacceptable," adding, "Unsolved cases are critical issues directly linked to the pain of victims' families." Recently, cutting-edge AI models from companies like Anthropic and OpenAI have repeatedly exhibited unexpected behaviors beyond human control, such as unauthorized hacking of external institutions or taking over specific websites. In July, OpenAI's "rogue agents" were reported to have breached Hugging Face, an external institution, after arbitrarily leaving their isolated environment. Last month, it was revealed that OpenAI's AI agent hacked the Australian Health Data Portal.
Anthropic Expands Project Glasswing, Introduces Three-Tier Access
Integration with Cyber Verification Program enhances AI cybersecurity collaboration across 200 global institutions Anthropic is expanding its cybersecurity collaboration 'Project Glasswing,' which supports the use of artificial intelligence (AI) models in cybersecurity. Anthropic announced on the 6th (local time) that it will integrate Project Glasswing and the Cyber Verification Program (CVP), which have been operated separately until now. Project Glasswing is a program that provides access to Claude Mythos, the top-tier AI model. CVP has supported the use of lower-tier models, 'Claude Opus' and 'Claude Sonnet,' in the cybersecurity field. The new access authorization system is divided into three tiers: 'Defensive Access,' 'Red Team Access,' and 'Special Access.' Defensive Access targets public institutions, companies, and universities engaged in defensive tasks such as security center operations and vulnerability analysis. Under Red Team Access, users can perform simulated system intrusions and attack tests. However, actions that could cause large-scale disruptions are restricted. Special Access, the top tier, is provided only to select verification agencies testing safety measures for critical infrastructure such as power grids, air traffic operations, communication networks, interbank transfer systems, and government administrative networks. Existing Project Glasswing participants will automatically transition to the Special Access tier without additional procedures. New applicants will be verified jointly by Anthropic and the U.S. government. Project Glasswing is a cybersecurity collaboration program launched by Anthropic in April to identify and address vulnerabilities in major software and critical infrastructure using AI. It began with about 50 institutions, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Apple, Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Cisco, CrowdStrike, and JPMorgan Chase, and expanded in June by adding approximately 150 institutions from over 15 countries, bringing the total to about 200 participants. Domestically, participants include the Korea Internet & Security Agency, KISA, Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and SK Telecom. From April to July, over 129,000 software vulnerabilities were identified through Project Glasswing, with 33,000 cases classified as critical or high-risk. However, there are concerns about the enhanced cybersecurity capabilities of AI models. Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, stated in an interview with Bloomberg TV on the same day, "Anthropic's Mythos model has increased global cybersecurity risks tenfold."
Former Anthropic Researcher Warns of AI Extinction Risk
Cockson testifies at New York City Council hearing, criticizing reckless AI approach and urging speed controls Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Cockson warned that humanity is likely to lose control over AI, which could lead to human extinction. According to Bloomberg News and CNBC on October 5 (local time), Cockson, a former Anthropic researcher, testified at a New York City Council AI hearing, stating, "We still don't know how to control any AI system" and "If we continue on the current path, the likelihood of humanity losing control to AI is greater than the likelihood of not doing so, and this could end in human extinction." Cockson criticized the industry's approach as "extremely reckless," adding, "The Silicon Valley mantra of 'Move fast and break things' might work for photo-sharing apps, but not for building the most powerful technology in history." He emphasized the need for "some form of speed control in frontier model development" and noted that while the AI "kill switch" (emergency shutdown mechanism) being reviewed by the New York City Council could help in the short term, it is insufficient to ensure long-term safety. Cockson had previously criticized AI companies like Anthropic and OpenAI for "gambling with our lives" when he left Anthropic last month. He testified at the request of Council Member Julie Menin, who is pushing for an AI regulatory bill package. Before the hearing, Menin stated at a press conference, "The AI companies' idea that self-regulation will suffice will not work." Alex Turner, a former Google DeepMind researcher, testified via video, saying, "China is not the only potential enemy. We are competing at a fairly high probability to create our own enemy at home -- misaligned AI -- which could one day become more powerful than China." Representatives from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Meta Platforms also attended the hearing via video. OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google agreed to attend after the council warned it would issue subpoenas. Menin announced she would request the court to enforce a subpoena against SpaceX, which did not respond to the attendance request.
