Anthropic nears $6 billion deal for Israeli AI startup Decart, creating new billionaires

Artificial intelligence leader Anthropic is reportedly in the final stages of acquiring Israeli AI startup Decart for approximately $6 billion. This significant deal is poised to create at least two new billionaires from Decart's founding team, Dean Leitersdorf and Moshe Shalev.

Industry estimates suggest that Leitersdorf and his team retain about 64% of Decart's shares, a stake valued on paper at roughly $4 billion. Each of the three founders is expected to net between $1 billion and $1.5 billion. This acquisition is seen as a major win for Israel's burgeoning AI sector, bringing a leading global AI developer to the country.

While Nvidia had reportedly offered a higher sum of $7-8 billion, Decart's founders opted for Anthropic's offer, which is structured mostly in shares rather than cash. This preference stems from the belief that Anthropic shares will yield a greater return, especially with the company planning what is anticipated to be the largest IPO in history, with a potential valuation of $2 trillion. Anthropic is also projecting substantial annual revenues, reaching $100-120 billion by year's end.

Most investors in Decart are not Israeli, with the exception of Israel's Aleph fund. Major U.S. funds like Benchmark, Sequoia, Radical Ventures, and Zeev Ventures are expected to share over $2 billion from the deal. The Israeli government anticipates significant tax revenues, primarily from the founders' share sales, potentially amounting to around NIS 4.2 billion.

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