Business

The Secret Lists Anthropic Shareholders Will Likely Never See

Anthropic has devised an unusual way for its founders to pass on their power.
In its IPO filings, Anthropic outlined how seven of its cofounders, who collectively have 50.1% of voting control, will be able to create a ranked list of who they’d like to inherit their power in the event of their death or incapacitation.
What’s particularly notable is that while the names would be shared with the other LLC members and Anthropic’s Nominating Committee, they are otherwise contractually confidential and generally not public.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, Anthropic President Daniela Amodei, and the five other LLC members will review and vote on whether to approve their fellow founders’ proposed successors, but the names will likely never be seen by other shareholders. (The agreement allows for the publication only in narrow circumstances, such as a court order or other legal requirement.)
Under the agreement, which was first highlighted by Forbes, each member of the Founders LLC may name up to 10 potential successors, ranked in order of preference. The other LLC members must then vote to approve the secret lists.
While succession plans are not unusual, Anthropic’s approach is unusual in how it ranks potential successors. It also underscores how, thanks to the Founders LLC, Anthropic’s leaders will be able to maintain control as shareholders begin to offer input post-IPO.
Facebook’s 2012 IPO paperwork suggested that if Mark Zuckerberg were in control of the company at the time of his death, then control could be transferred to someone he designated. (Meta has since tweaked this plan.) In 2020, Airbnb’s three cofounders agreed to transfer their voting power to their other cofounders if one of them died or became disabled, but that arrangement (which still exists) only lasts for nine months.
The succession plan does not establish CEO succession. Anthropic’s board of directors would handle such a chief executive appointment.
There are also some limitations to who the Anthropic founders can name on their lists.
Eight of their 10 potential successors are subject to eligibility requirements, including that the person named is a current or former employee of Anthropic or one of its subsidiaries, or has worked for “a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization or a national or international organization whose primary purpose is research, education, or the promotion of public benefit.” In either case, the person must have worked there for at least three years.
If the person worked for Anthropic, they must have held a specific role, such as a member of the technical staff or the company’s internal think tank, or another role approved by the board and a majority of the other members. If they worked outside Anthropic, they must have held a senior role at the nonprofit. These successors must also be US citizens, have permanent residency, or have valid work authorization.
The other two names, if a founder names all 10 potential successors, are not subject to the eligibility requirements, but they must also receive the required approval.
The succession plan doesn’t last forever.
Under the agreement, a successor member generally would cease to be a member on the 10th anniversary of Anthropic’s IPO. After that point, successor designees may be admitted only in limited circumstances during a transition period.

Business

Kalshi, cofounders hit with criminal charges in US state of Utah

The US state of Utah has announced criminal charges against popular prediction market Kalshi and its two cofounders, accusing the platform and its executives of illegally promoting online gambling.
Utah Attorney General Derek Brown filed the charges against Kalshi, chief executive officer Tarek Mansour and chief operating officer Luana Lopes Lara on Wednesday, a day after US President Donald Trump’s administration sued the state to block its civil enforcement actions against the platform.
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According to the criminal complaint filed in a Salt Lake City court, Kalshi facilitated an undercover law enforcement officer’s wagers on sports events, including games in the NFL.
The charges come after a federal judge in August ruled that Utah was entitled to enforce its stringent anti-gambling laws against online prediction markets, following a legal bid by Kalshi to block enforcement of the law.
The criminal complaint accuses the defendants of 12 counts of online gambling promotion, one count of general gambling promotion and one count of pattern of unlawful activity.
Kalshi and Brown’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Utah has some of the strictest prohibitions against gambling in the US, with its state constitution explicitly barring lawmakers from legalising the activity.
The charges mark an escalation in a showdown between US states and the Trump administration over the regulation of prediction markets.
On Tuesday, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed a lawsuit seeking to block Utah’s enforcement actions against prediction markets, arguing that the platforms fall under federal jurisdiction.
The regulator announced the move after Utah last week filed a civil lawsuit accusing Kalshi of facilitating betting on sports, elections, politics and other outcomes in violation of anti-gambling laws.
Dozens of US states, led by both Republican and Democratic administrations, have argued that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission does not have the authority to regulate prediction markets.
Last month, the state of New Jersey asked the US Supreme Court to rule on whether state or federal authorities have jurisdiction over sports betting on prediction market platforms.

Business

Alphabet, Microsoft earnings show surging AI demand and spending

Alphabet and Microsoft reported surging demand for artificial intelligence in their quarterly earnings Wednesday, and the technology giants continue pouring billions of dollars into the infrastructure needed to support the growing industry.
Google parent Alphabet expects capital expenditures to increase significantly in 2027 after projecting between $195 billion and $205 billion in spending this year, underscoring the enormous costs associated with expanding AI infrastructure.
Alphabet reported third-quarter revenue of $127.6 billion, up 25% from a year earlier, while Microsoft posted fiscal first-quarter revenue of $92.3 billion, an increase of 19%.
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Google Cloud revenue more than doubled to $30.7 billion, a 103% increase from the previous year, while Microsoft’s Azure cloud business reported revenue growth of 48%.
“Our AI infrastructure and solutions are the major drivers for Cloud growth, and our customers see us as the leading provider here, so there’s huge demand,” Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said during the company’s earnings call.
“We are working hard to bring more capacity online to meet this long-term demand.”
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Alphabet spent approximately $51.4 billion on capital expenditures during the third quarter, more than double the amount spent a year earlier, with much of the investment directed toward technical infrastructure supporting its AI and cloud businesses.
Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi also warned that Google Cloud could face near-term margin pressure as the company relies on third-party computing capacity to meet demand.
Microsoft similarly highlighted strong demand for AI services, with Microsoft Cloud revenue rising 30% to $63.9 billion.
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The company’s commercial remaining performance obligation, a measure of contracted future revenue across its commercial businesses that has not yet been recognized, climbed 73% to $677 billion.
The results underscore the challenge facing both companies as they seek to capitalize on growing AI demand while managing the substantial costs of building the infrastructure needed to support it.

Business

CEO says plan is to file for bankruptcy after ending luxury never-ending cruise that left hundreds stranded

More than 200 passengers, mostly Americans, are stranded in Cambodia after the operator of a luxury U.S. cruise ship that was on a continuous around-the-world voyage ran out of money due to skyrocketing fuel costs.
Villa Vie Residences, the Florida-based operator of the MV Odyssey, said the war with Iran quadrupled fuel costs and forced it to suspend operations on Tuesday.
CEO Mikael Petterson told CBS News in a phone interview Wednesday that Villa Vie Residences was paying an average of $700 a ton for fuel before the war broke out in late February. Since then, it has been paying anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000 per ton.
The Odyssey uses between 700 and 800 tons per month in fuel, Petterson disclosed.
“When you divide it over 300 people on board, it’s just backbreaking,” Petterson told CBS News. “And this has been going on for nine months. We’ve tried to do everything we can do.”
In a statement, Villa Vie Residences said the per cabin fuel costs rose from an average of $1,800 per month before the war to between $6,000 and $8,000.
The company was unwilling to pass those rising costs on to its passengers, Petterson said.
The Odyssey launched in October 2024 for a continuous around-the-world journey. At the time, passengers could become residents of the ship by purchasing a permanent cabin for several hundred thousand dollars. Some sold their homes to do so. At the time, they were given a 15-year minimum guarantee of residency aboard the Odyssey.
The Odyssey attempted to counter the spiking fuel prices by slowing down its itinerary and spending five or six days in each port “hoping that things would come to a close in the Middle East,” Petterson said, but it wasn’t enough.
“For us, when our monthly expenses go up from $400,000 to $2 million, where are we going to get the $1.6 million?” Petterson asked.
The Villa Vie Residences CEO said that the ship ran out of money as it searched for a financial partner, and the plan is now to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
“We’ve borrowed money, we’ve stretched our payrolls as far as we can, and we’re at a point where it’s just at a breaking point where we need capitalization,” Petterson said.
Passenger Benjamin Schatz thought the MV Odyssey would be his forever home.
“Honestly, right now, I’m in denial and in shock, and I’m heartbroken,” Schatz, a retiree, told CBS News.
CBS News met Schatz in April 2025 for a story featuring Villa Vie Residences. At that point, he had been living on the ship for about one year. On Wednesday, he was given just hours to pack up his life and leave.
Said Schatz: “There are people now who are homeless and who have very little money and don’t know what they’re going to do.”

Business

Why Alphabet’s stock could see its worst drop in years after the latest results

Shares of Alphabet were falling hard in after-hours trading as the company reported a third-quarter revenue and earnings miss on Wednesday, stoking fears that artificial intelligence is pressuring its core search-engine business.
Overall revenue for Alphabet GOOGL GOOG grew 25% from a year before to $127.6 billion, missing the $128.0 billion figure expected by analysts. Earnings per share of $2.12 were also lower than Wall Street consensus estimates of $3.02, driven by a $8.6 billion paper loss on equity stakes which the company attributed to its investment in SpaceX SPCX.

Business

Lumentum Jumps On Marvell Buyout Report

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