Anthropic's $3 billion milestone

👋 Good morning/evening (wherever you are). It’s Friday.

Reuters reports that Anthropic is generating $3B in annualized revenue.

That’s up from $1B in December and $2B by March — tripling in just five months.

OK let’s keep going ↓

Here’s what you should know:

• Veo 3 is now available in 73 countries

  Google's AI Ultra plan, which offers the highest access to Veo 3, is launching in the UK later today. The Ultra plan is now available in 73 countries, with plans to expand further.

• Gmail will now create AI summaries

  Summaries will be available at the top of the email content for messages where a summary is helpful, such as longer email threads or messages with several replies. Gemini will synthesize all the key points from the email thread and any replies thereafter will also be a part of the synopsis, keeping all summaries up to date.

• Gemini can watch videos in Google Drive

  You can now use Gemini in Drive to summarize videos, extract action items, and pull highlights directly from your recordings.

• ElevenLabs introduces Conversational AI 2.0

  Building on the foundation laid just five months ago, this release introduces significant improvements and comprehensive enterprise readiness, marking a new era of communication and understanding.

• BDO announces $1 billion AI strategy

  The firm is focusing on several high-impact areas poised to shape the future of its offerings and operations: Generative AI assistants, AI-driven personalization, AI business automation, and Multimodal AI.

• Barclays signs 100k license Copilot deal

  Chief Commercial Officer Judson Althoff told employees that Barclays agreed to buy 100,000 licenses for Microsoft’s Copilot AI assistants, according to people familiar with the event. Althoff also said multiple dozen customers — including Accenture Plc, Toyota Motor Corp., Volkswagen AG and Siemens AG — have over 100,000 Copilot users, according to the people, who requested anonymity to discuss the internal remarks.

• Duke expands suite of AI services

  Starting June 2, Duke undergraduates will have free, unlimited access to GPT-4o through a new pilot with OpenAI.

• Home Depot elevates CIO from within as AI adoption plans progress

  Angie Brown’s ascent coincides with a wave of tech-driven transformation across the retail industry, as top businesses deploy generative AI capabilities to enhance customer facing applications and assist employees technology’s potential.

• Comscore adds consumer AI tool usage data

  This new data set captures site visitation metrics for 117 AI tools and features across nine distinct categories, spanning both PC and mobile platforms.

• Leidos acquires Kudu Dynamics, advancing AI capabilities for cyber warfighters

  The approximately $300 million all-cash acquisition closed May 23.

• Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica to buy Optegra in medical AI push

  Optegra operates a network of over 70 eye hospitals and diagnostic facilities across the U.K., Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and the Netherlands. Its offering comprises ophthalmic treatments and elective vision correction procedures supported by artificial intelligence in the pre- and postoperative phases.

The numbers:

• Quest Software secured $350M from existing lenders to accelerate AI development, expand identity products, and strengthen its balance sheet.

• Abridge AI is raising $300M at a $5.3B valuation, nearly doubling since February with a16z leading the round.

• Snorkel AI raises $100M Series D at $1.3B as it helps turn raw data into training sets.

• MFV launches $25M fund for UChicago AI and quantum startups focused on frontier tech.

• Donut raises $7M pre-seed for AI infrastructure led by Hongshan BITKRAFT and HackVC.

Thought starters:

• The A.I. Job Apocalypse Is Here (with Mike Krieger of Anthropic)

• For Some Recent Graduates, the A.I. Job Apocalypse May Already Be Here

• Big Law’s Increasing AI Use Could Speed Billable Hours’ Demise

• The Darwin Gödel Machine: AI that improves itself by rewriting its own code

• Bond Capital’s 340-page AI report

Meme of the day:

Thanks for reading,

Eddie

Are we friends on LinkedIn and X? Let’s connect — DM me or hit the follow button.

P.S. If this was valuable, forward it to a friend. If you’re that smart friend, subscribe here.

P.P.S. Interested in reaching other ambitious readers like you? To become a sponsor, reply to this email.