How Zoom’s Little-Known Anthropic Investment Turned Into a $4 Billion Asset

Zoom may be sitting on a multibillion-dollar AI windfall that few investors noticed.

Shares of the video-conferencing company jumped 11% on Monday after analysts said Zoom’s quiet investment in Anthropic, the AI startup behind Claude, could now be worth between $2 billion and $4 billion.

The estimate comes from analysts at Baird, who said the stake represents an outsized return on what appears to have been a relatively small initial investment.

A quiet deal from 2023

Anthropic disclosed in May 2023 that Zoom Ventures had invested in the company as part of a broader partnership. Neither side revealed the size of the investment at the time.

However, Zoom reported $51 million in “strategic investments” during that quarter, according to filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Baird’s analysts believe most, if not all, of that amount went into Anthropic.

If correct, the math is striking.

From $51 million to billions

Anthropic now carries an estimated valuation of around $350 billion, according to the analysts. At that level, Zoom’s stake could be worth roughly 78 times its original investment, depending on dilution.

“While investors have focused on Zoom’s efforts to reaccelerate revenue growth and integrate AI into its products, the quieter, hidden gem might be its 2023 investment in Anthropic,” Baird wrote in a note.

In other words, Zoom’s biggest AI payoff may not come from features. It may come from equity.

A narrative shift for Zoom

Zoom emerged as one of the biggest winners of the Covid-19 pandemic, as remote work drove explosive growth. As offices reopened, demand cooled. The stock fell sharply from its peak.

The Anthropic stake could help rewrite that story.

“Zoom is directly invested in the success of Anthropic’s Claude,” the analysts said, pointing to growing IPO speculation around the AI company.

If Anthropic eventually goes public, Zoom’s long-overlooked bet could turn into one of the most valuable strategic investments made during the AI boom.

For a company still searching for its post-pandemic identity, that quiet decision from 2023 is suddenly hard to ignore.

Silas Stein | Picture Alliance | Getty Images