Microsoft Is Reportedly Spending $500M a Year on Anthropic, Even With OpenAI Deal Intact

Microsoft $MSFT ( ▼ 2.4% ) is basically running the “AI hedge fund” strategy in real time.

Even after stabilizing its massive $13B OpenAI partnership last fall, Microsoft is reportedly ramping up spending on rival AI lab Anthropic and the numbers are getting big fast.

According to a new report from The Information, Microsoft is now on pace to spend $500 million per year on Anthropic’s AI services.

Microsoft’s OpenAI Relationship Is “Fine”… But Not Exclusive

Last fall, Microsoft and OpenAI’s partnership looked like it was finally back on solid ground:

But the revised deal also allowed Microsoft to work with other AI vendors.

And now Microsoft is doing exactly that.

Anthropic Is Getting the Full Microsoft Treatment

Per The Information, Microsoft’s relationship with Anthropic is getting increasingly cozy, including a rare move:

Microsoft is reportedly offering incentives to salespeople where Anthropic sales can count toward their quotas.

That is a massive signal.

It means Microsoft is not just “testing” Anthropic quietly in the background. It is actively trying to sell it.

Microsoft Also Has Real Skin in the Game

Microsoft is not just buying usage.

It invested $5 billion in Anthropic in November, as part of a broader deal that also included Nvidia $NVDA ( ▼ 1.44% ) .

So Microsoft is now:

Anthropic Models Are Already Powering Microsoft Products

Microsoft has reportedly been using Anthropic’s AI more heavily inside its own ecosystem, including:

So while OpenAI might still be the headline partner, Anthropic is quietly becoming part of the plumbing.

Bottom line: Microsoft $MSFT ( ▼ 2.4% ) is leaning into a multi-model world. OpenAI remains central, but Anthropic is now big enough in Microsoft’s stack that it is reportedly costing $500M per year, and Microsoft is even compensating sales teams to push it. That is not a side quest. That is strategy.