Musk says he will give SpaceX shares to children in the U.S.

Musk’s pledge

According to Boston Herald, Elon Musk said Monday that he will give one share of SpaceX to “every kid in America” next year. The article says Musk made the comment in response to Anthropic’s announcement the day before, and he wrote, “I recommend giving the shares directly to the public.”

Anthropic’s announcement

Boston Herald reports that Anthropic said Sunday it will commit 5% of its shares to a new “public benefit” fund. The company said the shares will go to the Anthropic Public Benefit Fund, described as a new entity within the company. The article says the fund’s value could rise if the shares increase in price.

Value and missing details

The article says SpaceX closed at $146.03 on Friday and that, with about 73 million children under 18 in the United States, Musk’s pledge would be worth roughly $10.66 billion. Boston Herald reports that Musk did not explain how the share giveaway would be carried out, but added in his post that “This will be the first of many.”

Wider AI context and related business news

Boston Herald says the announcements came as Americans have become more concerned about artificial intelligence. It cites an AP-NORC poll saying 64% think AI is moving too fast, 27% say it is about right, and 8% say it is moving too slowly. The article also says Musk, Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, OpenAI’s Sam Altman and other leaders said last month that AI development should slow down, after an Anthropic researcher resigned with a warning about risks to humanity.

Other details about Musk and Anthropic

The article says Musk has become the biggest known donor in this year’s midterm elections, giving more than $276 million since July to support Republican majorities in Congress. It says Anthropic was set up as a public benefit corporation by Amodei and its five other cofounders, and that the company is planning a large initial public offering as soon as November after a confidential SEC filing in June. Boston Herald also reports that SpaceX went public in June, briefly made Musk the world’s first trillionaire, and that its shares are down 35.3% from their peak after that debut.