Private Markets: Anthropic raises $13B Series F at $183B post-money valuation

Anthropic announced that it has completed a Series F fundraising of $13B led by ICONIQ. Meanwhile, OpenAI is increasing the size of its secondary share sale to $10.3B at a $500B valuation.

This week’s private company news:

OpenAI is increasing the size of its secondary share sale by over $4B, giving eligible current and former employees the opportunity to sell roughly $10.3B in stock, up from the $6 billion it was initially targeting, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC‘s MacKenzie Sigalos. The sale will be at a $500B valuation, in line with expectations, the report added.

In a post to its corporate blog, Microsoft (MSFT) partner OpenAI stated, “As we scale ChatGPT and build new applications to serve hundreds of millions of people and businesses around the world, our ambition is to push the frontier of AI research and turn it into intuitive, safe, and useful tools that people love. That takes strong engineering systems, fast iteration, and a long-term focus on quality and reliability. Vijaye Raji will step into a new role as CTO of Applications, reporting to Fidji Simo, following the acquisition of Statsig. As a hands-on builder and trusted leader, Vijaye will head product engineering for ChatGPT and Codex, with responsibilities that span core systems and product lines including infrastructure and Integrity. His experience as founder and CEO of Statsig, and a decade leading large-scale consumer engineering at Meta, brings both entrepreneurial vision and operating expertise to scale our next generation of products.”

Some of the biggest capital raises by private companies this week include: 

• Anthropic – The company completed a Series F fundraising of $13B led by ICONIQ. This financing values Anthropic at $183B post-money. Along with ICONIQ, the round was co-led by Fidelity Management & Research Company and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Significant investors in this round include Altimeter, Baillie Gifford, affiliated funds of BlackRock (BLK), Blackstone (BX), Coatue, D1 Capital Partners, General Atlantic, General Catalyst, GIC, Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives (GS), Insight Partners, Jane Street, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, Qatar Investment Authority, TPG (TPG), T. Rowe Price Associates, T. Rowe Price Investment Management, WCM Investment Management, and XN.
• Quantinuum – Honeywell (HON) announced an approximately $600M equity capital raise for Quantinuum, developer of the world’s highest-performing quantum computer, at a pre-money equity valuation of $10B. Quanta Computer, NVentures — Nvidia’s (NVDA) venture capital arm — and QED Investors have joined existing shareholders JPMorgan (JPM), Mitsui, Amgen, Cambridge Quantum Holdings, Serendipity Capital and Honeywell — all of whom have reinvested in this round. The round also includes participation from new investors MESH and Korea Investment Partners.
• ID.me – The company said it raised $340M across a Series E financing announced and its recent credit facility, at a valuation exceeding $2B. The Series E round was led by Ribbit Capital, with participation from existing investors Ares Credit funds and Moonshots Capital, as well as new investors, including Positive Sum. Publicly traded companies in the space include Okta (OKTA), Mitek Systems (MITK), and OneSpan (OSPN).
• Treeline Biosciences – The company announced the close of a $200M Series A extension, bringing total funding to $1.1B. Publicly traded companies in the space include Recursion Pharmaceuticals (RXRX), Schrodinger (SDGR), and Exscientia (EXAI).
• Baseten Secures – The company powering inference for the world’s fastest-growing AI products announced a $150M Series D fundraise. Publicly traded companies in the space include Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT), and Google (GOOGL).

Unicorns to watch this week:

• Scale AI – Scale AI, the AI data labeling giant backed by Meta, on Wednesday sued rival Mercor for allegedly stealing trade secrets, according to Axios‘ Dan Primack. Scale’s complaint focuses on a former executive named Eugene Ling, who last month joined Mercor. Ling also is named as a defendant. It alleges that Ling downloaded more than 100 confidential documents, including strategies about a large customer, and shared them with his new employer. Publicly traded companies in the space include Palantir (PLTR) and C3.ai (AI).
• Databricks – The software company focused on data analytics and artificial intelligence recently announced the acquisition of machine learning startup Tecton to expand its AI agent offerings, the latest in a string of deals aimed at offering full-scale AI building tools for enterprise customers, according to Reuters. Publicly traded companies in the space include Snowflake (SNOW) and Teradata (TDC).
• Galvanize Therapeutics – The commercial-stage medical technology company pioneering pulsed electric field therapies for oncology and chronic lung disease successfully raised an oversubscribed $100M Series C financing. Publicly traded companies in the space include Opko Health (OPK) and Adverum Biotechnologies (ADVM).
• HappyRobot – Also in the spotlight this week was HappyRobot, an AI startup that automates communications. The company said it raised $44M in a funding round led by Base10 Partners. A source familiar with the deal told Reuters that the Series B round valued HappyRobot at around $500M. Publicly traded companies in the space include iRobot (IRBT).
• Enveda Biosciences – The company using machine learning to discover naturally occurring drug compounds reached unicorn status after securing $150M in Series D funding. Publicly traded companies in the space include Amgen (AMGN), Bristol-Myers (BMY), and Gilead (GILD).

IPOs to watch: 

• Sea Forrest International (SFTI) – the company has filed for an initial public offering of 3.75M Class A shares and anticipates that the initial public offering price of the Class A shares will be between $4.00 and $4.50 per share.
• Farlong Holding (AFA) – The company has filed for a firm commitment initial public offering of shares of common stock. Farlong has reserved the symbol “AFA” for purposes of listing its common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market and applied to list its common stock on Nasdaq.
• Gemini Space Station (GEMI) – The company announced that it has publicly filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission relating to a proposed initial public offering of its Class A common stock. Gemini is a global crypto platform founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss in 2014. Gemini offers a wide range of crypto products and services for individuals and institutions in over 60 countries.
• Black Rock Coffee Bar (BRCB) – The company announced that it has filed a registration statement with the SEC relating to a proposed initial public offering of its Class A common stock. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. The proposed offering is subject to market and other conditions, and there can be no assurance as to whether or when the offering may be completed, or as to the actual size or terms of the offering.
• Netskope (NTSK) – The company announced that it has filed a registration statement with the SEC relating to the proposed initial public offering of its Class A common stock. Netskope has applied to list its Class A common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “NTSK.” The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. 

“Private Markets” is The Fly’s recurring series of stories on the latest moves in the private sector, largest unicorn companies and initial public offerings to watch. Fly subscribers, add $PRIVATE to your portfolio for alerts on breaking news in the startup and venture capital space.