Anthropic flags Canadian lawsuits, data centre risks in highly anticipated IPO filing

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The client was not given the opportunity to put restrictions on the content or review it prior to publication. by BDCAnthropic flags Canadian lawsuits, data centre risks in highly anticipated IPO filingInvestors say Anthropic could be valued between US$1.5 and US$2 trillion following its listingLast updated 0 minutes ago Anthropic in its IPO said “any safety-related controversy or incident, whether actual or perceived, and regardless of fault or frequency, could prove significantly damaging to our business.” Photo by Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesAnthropic PBC’s ongoing legal battles with Canadian publishers and authors have been flagged as potential risks as the San Francisco-based artificial intelligence company prepares what might be the world’s largest-ever initial public offering.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLYSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESCreate an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an Account“Such claims could require us to limit functionality, segregate data or retrain models, and could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations,” it said its filing on Monday.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.A group of Canadian publishers, including Postmedia Network Canada Corp. (the owner of the Financial Post), the Globe and Mail Inc. and Torstar Corp., have sued Anthropic in Ontario for copyright infringement, alleging it used their content without consent to train its AI models. Anthropic said it disputes the allegations and “intends to vigorously defend itself in these matters.”Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againLa Presse Inc. in July filed a similar copyright infringement lawsuit against Anthropic and two more class actions were filed, one in British Columbia on behalf of all Canadian authors and one in Quebec on behalf of authors in that province, last year, claiming it violated Canada’s Copyright Act.Investors say Anthropic could be valued between US$1.5 and US$2 trillion following its listing that is expected to occur before Nov. 26. Its IPO underwriters include TD Securities Inc., RBC Capital Markets LLC and BMO Capital Markets Corp.The company also flagged its need to secure access to “enormous and increasing quantities” of data centre computing power as a risk in developing and running its models, continuing to grow its revenue and ensuring its models are safe but competitive with companies such as OpenAI Group PBC and Alphabet Inc.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.Canada ranks eighth worldwide by share of usage of Anthropic’s Claude.ai models, with the company highlighting Ottawa’s Shopify Inc. as one of its key customers that now has over 7,500 of its employees using Claude Code. Shopify also helps Anthropic evaluate its frontier models in test environments before they go public.Anthropic is expanding its operations in Canada, with the company hiring for various sales, research and engineering and data centre-related roles in Ontario and B.C., according to its Careers page.It is also building out its public policy team in the country and recently hired Ottawa-based Jacob Glick, who previously worked for Amazon.com.inc, Telus Corp. and Rogers Communications Inc., to serve as its public policy head in Canada.Anthropic signed its first Canadian data centre deal earlier this month to lease capacity from EverWind Fuels LLC’s planned $10-billion facility in Nova Scotia. It is also working with Canadian non-profit Venture for Canada to co-host an AI training program for Canadian entrepreneurs and small business owners.This advertisement has not loaded yet.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.Anthropic in its IPO said “any safety-related controversy or incident, whether actual or perceived, and regardless of fault or frequency, could prove significantly damaging to our business.”It said it has “engaged with” the Canadian government as well as regulators in Europe and the United Kingdom on Project Glasswing, which involves major tech companies helping it evaluate its most advanced AI models such as Mythos for software bugs and vulnerabilities.One Canadian who stands to benefit from the IPO is Toronto native Chris Olah, a machine learning researcher who was of the seven cofounders of Anthropic in 2021. He owns almost 242.9 million shares of the company.Anthropic said it remains “highly dependent” on its cofounders and key technical staff to achieve its goals, adding that the loss of critical staff could significantly impact its operations and competitive position.We apologize, but this video has failed to load.This advertisement has not loaded yet.Notice for the Postmedia NetworkThis website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.