Former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke Joins Anthropic's Long-Term Benefit Trust for AI Oversight

Former Fed chair Ben Bernanke joins Anthropic's AI oversight trust

July 9 (Reuters) - Anthropic said on Thursday it has appointed former U.S. Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke to its Long-Term Benefit Trust, an oversight body responsible for ensuring the AI startup remains committed to its public mission. A Nobel laureate in economic sciences, Bernanke led the Fed from 2006 to 2014, steering the central bank through the 2008 financial crisis. "The potential of ⁠artificial intelligence is enormous, and so is the range of outcomes. How that potential plays out will depend, in part, on the institutions we build around it," Bernanke said in a statement. Anthropic's Long-Term Benefit Trust is an independent body whose members are selected for their diverse expertise and have no financial stake in the startup. The company ⁠operates as a public benefit corporation, aiming to balance commercial success with social and public benefit. Bernanke joins Neil Buddy Shah, Richard Fontaine and Mariano-Florentino Cuellar on its Long-Term Benefit Trust. They ⁠are independent of the company's management and investors and have the power to appoint and remove a majority of its corporate ⁠board members. He chaired the economics department at Princeton and built a body of research on the Great ⁠Depression and the role banks play in financial crises -- work that earned him the Nobel Prize in 2022. Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Anthropic appoints former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke to its independent trust

Anthropic on Thursday announced that it has appointed Ben Bernanke, the former chair of the Federal Reserve, to its Long-Term Benefit Trust, the company's independent governance structure that advises the company and appoints its board members. Bernanke served as Federal Reserve chairman from 2006 to 2014, having succeeded the late Alan Greenspan. Not long after taking office, he found himself in the middle of the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression when the financial crisis hit in 2008. Part of his legacy was taking the Fed into the realm of zero interest rates and quantitative easing. After leaving the Fed, he served in several capacities at organizations including the Brookings Institution, Citadel and Pimco. In 2022, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in economics for research on Great Depression causes. In his role as a member of Anthropic's Long-Term Benefit Trust, Bernanke will help the company understand how AI is changing the economy, according to a blog post. "Anthropic has created a unique governance structure to try to ensure that the long-run benefits of AI for humanity far outweigh the risks," Bernanke said in a statement. "I am honored to have this opportunity, and I will try to contribute in any way I can to this critical mission."

Ben Bernanke joins Anthropic's Long-Term Benefit Trust

Anthropic on Thursday appointed Ben Bernanke, the former chair of the Federal Reserve and a Nobel laureate in economics, to its Long-Term Benefit Trust, the company's independent oversight body. The Long-Term Benefit Trust exists to hold Anthropic to its stated mission of developing AI for the long-term benefit of humanity. Compensation is limited to time and service; no trust member holds an equity stake in the company, and all are selected independently of Anthropic's management and investors. The trust has the authority to appoint members to Anthropic's board of directors. Bernanke is the fourth member of the body, joining Chair Neil Buddy Shah, national security expert Richard Fontaine, and international affairs expert Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar. Ben Bernanke led the Federal Reserve from 2006 to 2014, guiding the central bank through the 2008 financial crisis. Before entering government, he spent more than two decades as an academic economist; his academic career included leading the economics department at Princeton, where he developed influential research into the causes of the Great Depression and how bank failures amplify economic downturns. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded him the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 2022 in recognition of that scholarship. He is currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution. Anthropic said economic analysis will be Bernanke's primary contribution to the trust, particularly helping the company track and interpret AI's effects on the broader economy. "The potential of artificial intelligence is enormous, and so is the range of outcomes," Bernanke said in a statement. "Anthropic has created a unique governance structure to try to ensure that the long-run benefits of AI for humanity far outweigh the risks. I am honored to have this opportunity, and I will try to contribute in any way I can to this critical mission." Anthropic Co-Founder and President Daniela Amodei said Bernanke's career -- from studying how economies react to disruption to steering the world's largest economy through crisis -- would help the company anticipate and respond to how advanced AI affects workforces and economies around the world. Neil Buddy Shah, the trust's chair, said Bernanke's eight years leading the Federal Reserve and his handling of the financial crisis demonstrated "expertise, independence, and sound judgment" -- the standard the trust looks for in new members. As a Public Benefit Corporation, Anthropic is legally organized around obligations to both profitable operation and broader societal welfare. The company filed a confidential IPO prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission in early June, a step that could lead to one of the largest public listings in market history. Its last primary fundraising round, a Series H completed in late May, set its valuation at $965 billion.

Ben Bernanke: Former Fed chair Ben Bernanke joins Anthropic's AI oversight trust

A Nobel laureate in ⁠economic ⁠sciences, Bernanke led the Fed from 2006 to 2014, steering the central bank through the 2008 financial crisis. Anthropic said on Thursday it has appointed former U.S. Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke to its Long-Term Benefit Trust, an oversight body responsible for ensuring the AI startup remains committed to its public mission. A Nobel laureate in ⁠economic ⁠sciences, Bernanke led the Fed from 2006 to 2014, steering the central bank through the 2008 financial crisis. "The potential of artificial intelligence is enormous, and so is the range of outcomes. How that potential plays out will depend, in part, on ⁠the institutions we build around it," Bernanke said in a statement. Anthropic's Long-Term Benefit Trust is ⁠an independent body whose members are selected for their diverse expertise and have no financial stake in the startup. The company operates as a public benefit corporation, aiming to balance commercial success with social and public benefit. Bernanke joins Neil Buddy Shah, Richard Fontaine and Mariano-Florentino Cuellar on its Long-Term Benefit Trust. They are independent of the company's management and investors and have the ⁠power to appoint and remove a majority of its corporate board members. He chaired the economics department at Princeton and built a body of research on the Great Depression and the role banks play in financial crises - work that earned him the Nobel Prize in 2022.

Anthropic adds Ben Bernanke to Long-Term Benefit Trust By Investing.com

Investing.com -- Anthropic appointed Ben Bernanke to its Long-Term Benefit Trust on Thursday. Bernanke, a Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution and former Federal Reserve Chair, joins the independent body tasked with holding the AI company to its mission of responsible advanced AI development. Bernanke served as Federal Reserve Chair from 2006 to 2014, leading the central bank during the 2008 global financial crisis and subsequent recovery. He spent over 20 years as an academic economist, primarily at Princeton, where he chaired the economics department and conducted research on the Great Depression and banking's role in financial crises. He received the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 2022 for this work. "The potential of artificial intelligence is enormous, and so is the range of outcomes. How that potential plays out will depend, in part, on the institutions we build around it," Bernanke said. "Anthropic has created a unique governance structure to try to ensure that the long-run benefits of AI for humanity far outweigh the risks." Daniela Amodei, Cofounder and President of Anthropic, said Bernanke's career spans studying economic reactions to disruptive moments and steering the world's largest economy through such periods. She said his judgment will help the company anticipate and respond to how advanced AI affects workforces and economies globally. Anthropic operates as a Public Benefit Corporation, balancing commercial success with social and public good. The Long-Term Benefit Trust provides oversight on how Anthropic develops and deploys AI. Trustees hold no equity in Anthropic, receive no profits, and are compensated only for their time and service. Existing Trustees select new members in consultation with the company. The Trust holds authority to appoint Anthropic board members and advises leadership on decisions involving AI risks and societal impacts. Bernanke joins Neil Buddy Shah, Richard Fontaine, and Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar on the Trust.