Anthropic’s IPO prospectus lists $18 million in 2025 compensation for chief executive Dario Amodei and $16.4 million for president Daniela Amodei, Reuters reported on 6 October after reviewing the filing. Their packages were weighted towards stock and options rather than salary.
Key points
- The siblings’ annual salaries doubled to $1.4 million each in July 2026.
- Anthropic’s board granted them further restricted stock units, with awards linked to continued employment or the IPO.
- Chief financial officer Krishna Rao earned $720,250 in 2025.
- Anthropic is preparing for an IPO as early as autumn 2026 that could value it at more than $2 trillion.
Equity dominates the Amodeis’ 2025 pay
Both Amodeis had their annual salaries doubled to $1.4 million in July 2026. Stock and option awards accounted for most of their 2025 compensation. The salary increase came after the year covered by the $18 million and $16.4 million totals.
Anthropic’s board also granted the siblings further restricted stock units in 2026. Those awards carry conditions: some depend on the executives remaining with Anthropic, while others are linked to its IPO. The units promise a future payout if the relevant conditions are met.
Chief financial officer Krishna Rao received $720,250 in compensation for 2025. He was granted options to buy 1.4 million shares when Anthropic hired him in 2024, and he exercised options worth $385,285 in 2025. Those option figures concern a separate award and exercise, rather than the Amodeis’ restricted stock units.
Anthropic told Reuters through a spokesperson that it would not comment on the compensation figures. Reuters said the IPO statement it reviewed does not describe the founders’ ownership stakes. That leaves the executives’ reported annual pay distinct from the value of their existing holdings in the company.
Amodei’s $18 million against other chief executives
Amodei’s 2025 package was above those reported for the chief executives of Alphabet and Amazon, but below those at Oracle and Nvidia. Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai received $10.9 million, including $8.8 million for personal security. Amazon chief executive Andrew Jassy received $2.1 million, mainly reflecting travel and security.
The figures for those two executives differ from another measure used in their disclosures. Pichai’s “compensation actually paid” was $213.9 million in 2025, reflecting, among other factors, a change in the value of unvested shares. Jassy’s figure on that basis was $13.2 million.
Oracle co-chief executive Clayton Magouyrk received $627.5 million in 2025. For a broader comparison, average annual compensation for S&P 500 chief executives rose 21% to $22.8 million that year, according to the AFL-CIO. That average excludes Elon Musk’s $158 billion restricted stock plan at Tesla.
Courtney Yu, research director at executive compensation data firm Equilar, described Amodei’s $18 million as being at the lower end for a company valued at $2 trillion. Yu said the eventual value of his holding would depend on what his ownership stake proves to be when Anthropic goes public. Anthropic has six other co-founders, Yu added.
Anthropic’s IPO could exceed $2 trillion
Anthropic is preparing for an IPO as early as autumn 2026 that could value the company at more than $2 trillion. Its prospectus also puts its 2025 loss at $42 billion while reporting a 12-fold rise in revenue, as AI Affairs previously reported.
Reuters reported that the IPO filing records a pledge by Dario Amodei, Daniela Amodei and their fellow co-founders to put 80% of their personal Anthropic equity towards charitable causes.
Anthropic plans an investor meeting for 14 October, AI Affairs previously reported.
