Anthropic and OpenAI are both moving deeper into enterprise AI by launching new joint ventures aimed at expanding their reach with large-scale business clients.
On Monday, Anthropic revealed a new venture focused on deploying enterprise AI solutions, backed by major financial players including Blackstone, Hellman & Friedman, and Goldman Sachs. Additional backing comes from firms such as Apollo Global Management, General Atlantic, GIC, Leonard Green & Partners, and Sequoia Capital.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the venture is valued at $1.5 billion, with $300 million commitments each from Anthropic, Blackstone, and Hellman & Friedman.
Just hours earlier, Bloomberg reported that OpenAI is preparing a similar initiative called The Development Company. This venture is expected to operate at a much larger scale, targeting $4 billion in funding from 19 investors at a $10 billion valuation. Key investors include TPG, Brookfield Asset Management, Advent International, and Bain Capital.
Both ventures follow a similar strategy: partnering with major asset managers to unlock enterprise AI deals while creating dedicated channels to deploy AI solutions within large organizations. These setups are expected to give investors preferential access to AI services across their portfolio companies, while also allowing them to capture more value from resulting contracts.
A key part of this approach involves scaling engineering support using the forward-deployed engineer model, popularized by Palantir Technologies. This model embeds engineers directly within client organizations to build tailored AI tools that integrate into existing workflows.
Anthropic highlighted that its teams will work closely with professionals across industries, such as clinicians and IT staff, to design practical, workflow-ready solutions. The focus is on real-world deployment across mid-sized enterprises rather than generic AI offerings.
These moves come as both companies continue aggressive fundraising while positioning themselves for potential public listings. OpenAI, for instance, recently secured $122 billion in new funding, pushing its valuation to $852 billion.
The race for enterprise AI dominance is clearly accelerating, and both companies are now building the infrastructure to lock in long-term business customers at scale.
