Akamai Technologies issues warrant to Anthropic for 5% of common stock in massive cloud deal

Akamai Technologies just handed Anthropic the keys to a potentially enormous equity stake, issuing a warrant that lets the AI company purchase up to 5% of Akamai’s common stock. The catch: Anthropic has to spend billions on Akamai’s cloud services to fully unlock it. The warrant is part of an $11.6 billion deal spanning seven years, announced on September 24, in which Akamai will provide cloud infrastructure to support Anthropic’s growing AI workload demands. Combined with a previous $1.8 billion contract announced in May, the total potential value of the relationship sits at roughly $20 billion. How the equity piece works Akamai structured the warrant around non-voting convertible Series B Preferred Stock, representing approximately 7.7 million shares of common stock. The exercise price is set at $111.33 per share. About 2% of Akamai’s common stock vests immediately upon the $11.6 billion commitment. The remaining 3% vests incrementally as Anthropic spends up to an additional $9 billion on Akamai’s services over the contract’s duration. The “non-voting” designation matters too. Anthropic can benefit financially from Akamai’s stock appreciation without gaining any boardroom influen...