Google has further invested in AI by providing Anthropic, a leading AI startup and rival to OpenAI, with an additional $1 billion.
As reported by the Financial Times, Google’s increased investment in Anthropic reflects a strategic move to strengthen its standing in the highly competitive artificial intelligence market.
Google’s recent billion-dollar investment in Anthropic follows a substantial 2023 investment of $2 billion. This earlier investment comprised a $500 million cash infusion and a further commitment of $1.5 billion over time.
Anthropic is currently in negotiations to secure a $2 billion funding round, spearheaded by Lightspeed Venture Partners. This investment round reportedly places Anthropic’s valuation at around $60 billion.
Google’s latest investment in Anthropic brings its overall stake to roughly $3 billion. In a parallel move, Amazon significantly boosted its investment in Anthropic in November 2024, doubling it to $8 billion.
Anthropic’s annualized revenue currently sits around $875 million, fueled by its business model. This model involves selling access to its sophisticated AI models directly and through partnerships with cloud providers like Amazon Web Services.
Google’s amplified financial support for Anthropic underscores the intensifying competition among tech giants to establish leadership in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Anthropic is a key player in the development of foundational AI models, competing directly with OpenAI, which enjoys significant backing from Microsoft. OpenAI’s launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 catapulted AI into the public consciousness and ignited an intense competitive race among major tech companies.
Isomorphic Labs, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., is poised to commence clinical trials for its inaugural AI-designed drug by the close of 2025. This milestone signifies a pivotal advancement in pharmaceutical development, mirroring the substantial investments major tech companies are making in AI-powered healthcare solutions.
In an interview with the Financial Times at the World Economic Forum, Sir Demis Hassabis, founder of Isomorphic Labs, stated that the company is focusing on major disease areas such as oncology, cardiovascular conditions, and neurodegeneration.
“We’re looking at oncology, cardiovascular, neurodegeneration, all the big disease areas, and I think by the end of this year, we’ll have our first drug,” Sir Demis maintained.
Demis Hassabis further asserted that it has forged partnerships with two pharmaceutical giants, Eli Lilly and Co. and Novartis AG, to collaborate on six drug development programs.
These partnerships underscore the significant potential of AI in revolutionizing drug discovery and highlight the transformative impact AI could have on the healthcare sector.
“It usually takes an average of five to 10 years to discover one drug. And maybe we could accelerate that 10 times, which would be an incredible revolution in human health,” he added.
Oracle Corp has indeed unveiled plans for an AI-driven cancer vaccine system designed to deliver personalized treatments. This development underscores the growing role of AI in revolutionizing cancer care and the potential for personalized medicine to significantly improve treatment outcomes.
