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Amazon eyes deeper investment in Anthropic to stay ahead in AI race

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Amazon is reportedly considering another multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, the artificial intelligence firm behind the Claude AI models, according to the Financial Times. The potential move would strengthen Amazon’s position as a major player in the rapidly intensifying global AI race.

The report, citing sources familiar with the matter, says Amazon wants to expand on the $8 billion investment it committed to Anthropic in November 2023. That initial deal, which included an upfront $4 billion, made Amazon one of the company’s largest stakeholders, alongside Google, which has invested more than $3 billion into Anthropic.

Both Amazon and Anthropic declined to comment on the renewed talks when contacted by Reuters.

A race to stay relevant in AI

Amazon’s increasing interest in Anthropic highlights its urgency to catch up to rivals OpenAI and Google, who have made significant consumer-facing advances in generative AI over the past two years. Anthropic’s Claude family of AI models competes directly with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.

“We quickly realized that we had many shared goals that were fundamentally critical,” said Dan Grossman, Amazon’s VP of worldwide corporate development. “The size of the (existing investment) represents our ambition.”

Amazon’s deepened partnership with Anthropic could also help it attract top AI talent, an increasingly competitive space where companies are offering equity, massive compensation packages, and research freedom to lure leading minds in machine learning and large language models.

Strategic implications

Amazon’s AI ambitions are closely tied to its cloud business, AWS, where Anthropic’s models are being integrated into services for enterprise customers. The ongoing partnership gives Anthropic priority access to AWS’s Trainium and Inferentia chips, optimizing both model development and deployment.

Beyond infrastructure, Amazon is aiming to embed Claude-powered AI tools deeper into Alexa, Amazon Web Services, and its e-commerce ecosystem, which could give it an edge in personalized search, voice interfaces, and customer service automation.

The prospective increase in funding would also help Amazon maintain equity leadership in Anthropic amid growing investor interest in the startup. With AI startups commanding soaring valuations, Amazon appears determined not to lose strategic control over a potential future titan in the field.

Microsoft to Cut Around 4% of Workforce Amid Heavy AI Investment Costs

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Microsoft announced it will lay off nearly 4% of its global workforce as part of efforts to control costs while investing heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company, with about 228,000 employees as of June 2024, had already begun layoffs in May affecting around 6,000 workers, primarily in sales roles.

The tech giant has pledged $80 billion in capital spending for fiscal year 2025, but the soaring costs of expanding AI capabilities have pressured profit margins. Microsoft’s cloud margin for the June quarter is expected to decline compared to the previous year.

In addition to workforce reductions, Microsoft plans to simplify its organizational structure by reducing management layers and streamlining products, processes, and roles. The gaming division, including its Barcelona-based King unit known for Candy Crush, will also see job cuts of about 10%, or roughly 200 employees.

Microsoft’s layoffs follow a broader trend among Big Tech companies investing in AI, with peers like Meta trimming about 5% of its lowest performers, Alphabet cutting hundreds of jobs, and Amazon reducing staff across various segments amid economic uncertainties and rising operational costs.

Figma Reports Strong Revenue and Profit Growth Ahead of NYSE IPO

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Figma, the cloud-based design platform, revealed robust revenue and profit growth in its filing for an initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange, setting the stage for one of 2025’s most anticipated listings. This move comes more than a year after Adobe’s planned $20 billion acquisition of Figma was called off due to regulatory hurdles in Europe and the UK.

For the first quarter ending March 31, 2025, Figma reported revenue of $228.2 million, a significant increase from $156.2 million in the same period last year. Its net income also tripled to $44.9 million. The company’s valuation had reached $12.5 billion last year during a tender offer allowing early investors and employees to cash out partially.

Figma’s IPO had been expected after Adobe’s acquisition was blocked and mutually shelved in December 2023. CEO and co-founder Dylan Field emphasized the company’s commitment to AI development, acknowledging that investing heavily in this technology could affect near-term efficiency but is vital for long-term growth. Field indicated the company will take “big swings” on platform investments and potential mergers and acquisitions, even if such moves may not seem immediately rational.

The company plans to use a portion of the IPO proceeds to pay down borrowings under its revolving credit facility, which it has used to manage upcoming tax payments. Major investment banks Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Allen & Co, and J.P. Morgan are leading the underwriting of the offering. Figma’s shares are expected to trade under the ticker symbol “FIG.”