First-Half Net Loss Grows, but Anthropic Plans 1 Quadrillion Won in Infrastructure Investment (Comprehensive)

WSJ Reports After Obtaining IPO Registration Statement
Negotiating Infrastructure Contracts Worth Up to $150 Billion
Plans Infrastructure Investment of Up to $750 Billion

Anthropic, the company behind the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot service Claude, is planning infrastructure investments of up to $750 billion. Its net loss in the first half of this year was larger than last year's, raising further concerns about whether it can shoulder astronomical investment costs. However, the confirmation of its massive infrastructure investment plans has led to expectations that cloud and semiconductor companies could benefit.

Up to $750 Billion in Infrastructure Investments Ahead

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei speaks at an event in New Delhi, India, on Feb. 19, 2026 (local time). Reuters-Yonhap

According to a report by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on October 20 (local time), based on Anthropic's Form S-1 registration statement for its initial public offering (IPO), the value of cloud computing contracts Anthropic will have to pay over the next 7 to 10 years amounts to $450 billion. The WSJ reported that many of the contracts cannot be terminated early and require payment regardless of actual usage. This means the company would have to pay hundreds of billions of dollars even if demand for AI plunged or use of its models declined.

Specifically, Anthropic has signed contracts worth $111 billion with Google Cloud, $110 billion with Amazon Web Services (AWS), and $31 billion with Microsoft (MS). Including a $160 billion contract to lease Google's AI chips through Broadcom, as well as other cloud contracts, the total value of its infrastructure agreements exceeds $600 billion.

Anthropic is also negotiating contracts to secure infrastructure worth up to $150 billion. If those deals are finalized, its infrastructure-related spending could reach as much as $750 billion, the WSJ reported.

In its registration statement, Anthropic said it had requested more computing capacity than cloud providers such as AWS, Google, and MS were willing to provide. It cited the expansion of their own AI businesses, which has led big tech companies to view Anthropic as a competitor, as a reason it had been unable to secure additional computing capacity.

International media outlets expressed concern about whether Anthropic could afford its large-scale, long-term infrastructure contracts. The Financial Times (FT) analyzed that the financial burden could grow if the company's revenue growth slows. Anthropic spent $9 billion securing AI-related infrastructure in the first half of this year alone. That was four times the $2.3 billion spent in the same period last year and exceeded its full-year spending of $7.3 billion last year.

Net Loss Larger Than Last Year's

Reuters-Yonhap News

As the burden of future spending continues to grow, Anthropic reported a net loss of $80.7 billion (about 107 trillion won) in the first half of this year. However, $72 billion, or 89% of the total loss, was identified as an accounting loss resulting from changes in the value of financial instruments used to raise funds, including convertible bonds. This is nearly twice the $42 billion loss reported for the full year last year, although more than $34 billion of that figure was also recorded as an accounting loss due to changes in fair value.

Excluding changes in book value, the actual loss is estimated at about $8.7 billion. However, the fact that this exceeds the company's full-year loss last year has fueled debate over whether it can afford its massive capital expenditures.

The concentration of revenue among a small number of customers is also seen as a risk factor. Anthropic said about 20% of its revenue in the first half of this year came from two customers, and it expects a "substantial portion" of its revenue to continue coming from a "limited number of customers" for the time being. Revenue in the first half of this year surged 14.8-fold to $16.3 billion, up from $1.1 billion in the same period last year.

Anthropic also identified community opposition to data center construction as a business risk. Most of its data centers are in the United States, and it has signed some letters of intent to build facilities overseas. The company said opposition movements were becoming "more organized and coordinated across multiple regions," and expressed concern that its high profile "could attract particular attention to businesses associated with us."

Meanwhile, the offering prospectus also disclosed executive compensation. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dario Amodei and his sister, President Daniela Amodei, each received a base salary of about $655,000 (869.19 million won) last year. Their total compensation, including stock and options, was about $18 million (23.886 billion won) and $16.5 million (21.8955 billion won), respectively. These figures are similar to the median for CEOs at S&P 500 companies, but somewhat lower than those of executives at technology companies. The founders also pledged to devote 80% of their respective stakes to charitable activities. On October 18, Anthropic also announced that it would contribute 5% of its total shares to a newly established "public benefit fund." The fund can be used for charitable donations or to support "specific groups."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.