Anthropic Plans Dual-Class Shares to Grant Founders Extra Voting Rights
Anthropic is reportedly planning to issue a new class of shares with extra voting rights to CEO Dario Amodei and other co-founders. This move aims to shield the founders, who hold relatively small equity stakes with Amodei owning only about 2%, from external shareholder pressure. As Anthropic prepares for a potential IPO, this dual-class share structure will help the founders maintain control and protect their safety-oriented mission from commercial pressures. It highlights the ongoing tension in the AI industry between rapid commercialization and ethical, safety-focused governance. In addition to founder voting rights, Anthropic plans to use a special class of shares to maintain its Long-Term Benefit Trust, allowing this independent body to elect the majority of the board. While dual-class structures are common in tech companies like Meta and SpaceX, this is the first time Anthropic's management would receive such extra voting power.
## BACKGROUND
Anthropic is structured as a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC), which legally requires it to balance public benefit and social impact alongside financial profits. To enforce this mission, the company established the Anthropic Long-Term Benefit Trust, an independent body of five trustees responsible for ensuring the company aligns with public interest.