Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings joins Anthropic’s board

Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings is joining Anthropic’s board of directors, the company announced on Wednesday.

Hastings’ appointment adds a veteran Big Tech executive to one of OpenAI’s largest — and youngest — competitors in the AI race. The Netflix co-founder seems likely to help Anthropic grow from a startup into a major company, pulling from his experience sitting on the boards of Netflix, Microsoft, Bloomberg, and Meta.

However, Anthropic notes that Hastings was appointed by its Long-Term Benefit Trust, an independent body at the top of the startup’s corporate governance structure that’s designed to be “financially disinterested.” The Long-Term Benefit Trust can appoint and remove board members, with the ultimate goal of helping Anthropic develop AI for the long-term benefit of humanity.

Hastings joins Anthropic’s existing board members: co-founders Dario and Daniela Amodei; investor Yasmin Razavi; and the CEO of Confluent, Jay Kreps.