Eric Schmidt reportedly owns about 1% of Anthropic. That is roughly half the stake held by the company’s own CEO, Dario Amodei, who is estimated to hold about 2%.
One percent sounds modest until you look at the price tag. With Anthropic’s anticipated IPO valuation floated between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion, that sliver could add an estimated $10 billion to $20 billion to the former Google CEO’s net worth.
How a 2021 check turned into a fortune
Schmidt bought in early. He reportedly took his roughly 1% stake during Anthropic’s Series A round in May 2021.
At that point, the company was valued at $461 million. His investment has been described as amounting to “tens of millions” of dollars.
Anthropic’s most recent private round closed at a post-money valuation of $965 billion as of May 2026.
Discussions ahead of the IPO have reportedly floated valuation estimates between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion.
The resulting estimate of Schmidt’s potential gain, between $10 billion and $20 billion, depends entirely on where that final number lands.
For context, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index currently values Schmidt’s net worth at $57.5 billion. An Anthropic windfall at the top of the estimated range would be a meaningful addition, not a rounding error.
The founder versus the early backer
Amodei, Anthropic’s CEO and co-founder, holds an estimated 2% stake. Schmidt, an outside investor who arrived at the Series A, holds about half as much of the company as the person running it.
Each funding round brings in new money, and each round dilutes existing holders. Founders who start with large stakes can find their percentage shrinking round after round.
The IPO timeline
Formal IPO marketing for Anthropic could begin as early as the week of November 9, 2026.
IPO marketing, often called a roadshow, is when a company pitches itself to institutional investors before shares start trading. It is where the final price range gets tested against real demand.
That process will determine whether the $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion estimates hold up.
What this means for investors and the AI market
A trillion-dollar-plus IPO would give ordinary investors their first direct route into one of the leading AI model developers. Until now, exposure to Anthropic has largely been limited to private investors and institutions.
Investors buying at a valuation between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion would be paying for an enormous amount of expected future growth. Early backers like Schmidt bought at $461 million. Late arrivals would face a very different risk profile.
There are caveats worth watching. The valuation estimates are discussions, not commitments. The IPO marketing date is an “as early as” target, not a locked schedule.
The stake percentages themselves are also estimates. Schmidt’s roughly 1% and Amodei’s roughly 2% come from reporting, not from a public filing, and an IPO prospectus would typically bring more precise ownership disclosures.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Diego Almada Lopez. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.