Microsoft and Nvidia have announced a high-profile investment in Anthropic, the AI startup behind the Claude model, in a move that underscores the AI industry’s growing appetite for computing power. The deal includes a $30 billion commitment for Anthropic to use Microsoft’s cloud services, while Nvidia will provide chips and infrastructure support.

Details of the Investment

• Nvidia commitment: Up to $10 billion to Anthropic.
• Microsoft commitment: Up to $5 billion, alongside a broader $30 billion contract for Anthropic to use Microsoft Azure cloud services.
• Collaboration: Both companies will collaborate on cloud infrastructure and AI model deployment. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella confirmed the partnership will involve mutual use of AI models and joint market efforts.

“We’re increasingly going to be customers of each other. We will use Anthropic models, they will use our infrastructure and we’ll go to market together,” Nadella said.

The investment strengthens Microsoft’s position in the AI sector while reducing reliance on OpenAI, its previous major AI partner.

Context: AI Industry Expansion and Competition

The AI sector has grown rapidly since the debut of ChatGPT, and investors are increasingly cautious about overinflated valuations and circular deals. Analyst Gil Luria of D.A. Davidson noted:

“The main feature of the partnership is to reduce the AI economy’s reliance on OpenAI… Nvidia was also somewhat dependent on OpenAI’s success and is now helping generate broader demand.”

Anthropic, founded in 2021 by former OpenAI staff, was recently valued at $183 billion. The company serves over 300,000 business and enterprise customers and anticipates annualized revenue to nearly triple to $26 billion next year.

Technical and Cloud Collaboration

• Compute commitment: Anthropic will dedicate up to 1 gigawatt of compute power using Nvidia’s Grace Blackwell and Vera Rubin hardware, valued at an estimated $20–25 billion.
• Claude AI integration: Microsoft Azure AI Foundry customers will gain access to Claude, making it the only frontier AI model available across all three major cloud providers.
• Nvidia partnership: Will focus on improving chip performance and optimizing AI model efficiency.

Industry experts, including eMarketer analyst Jacob Bourne, view the move as part of the consolidation trend in AI, with a few large companies controlling the bulk of enterprise AI infrastructure.

Market Reaction

Despite the announcement, tech stocks trended lower on Tuesday:

• Microsoft shares fell 3.2%.
• Nvidia shares dropped 1.9%.
• Amazon declined 4%, amid a cloud services outage earlier in the day.

Neither Anthropic nor OpenAI is publicly traded, but the deal signals the increasing interdependence of AI startups and major cloud providers in the race to develop advanced AI systems.