Billionaire Profile
Sam McCandlish
Global Rank
#1074

Image: Public domain | via Wikimedia Commons

Sam McCandlish

CEO, Anthropic
US
Real-Time Net Worth
$3.7B
As of December 2025
Age
35
Source
Artificial intelligence
Industry
technology
Citizenship
US

Biography

Sam McCandlish is the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Anthropic, a leading artificial intelligence company. With a PhD in theoretical physics from Stanford University and a background at OpenAI, McCandlish has established himself as a prominent figure in the AI sector. His expertise lies in model training and large-scale systems development. His work has garnered over 100,000 citations. McCandlish's focus is on the responsible development and deployment of AI systems. He is a key contributor to Anthropic's Claude chatbot family.

Wealth Over Time

In-Depth Profile

Early Life and Education

Sam McCandlish, a rising star in the artificial intelligence arena, is the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Anthropic. His educational journey began with a solid foundation in theoretical physics, earning a PhD from Stanford University. This background provided him with the analytical and problem-solving skills that are critical in the complex field of AI.

Rise to Success

McCandlish's career trajectory is marked by significant contributions to the field. Prior to co-founding Anthropic in 2021, he spent three years as a member of the technical staff at OpenAI. His experience at OpenAI provided valuable insights into the development and deployment of large-scale AI systems. At Anthropic, he focuses on model training and large-scale systems development.

Key Business Strategies

At Anthropic, McCandlish plays a crucial role in the development of the Claude chatbot family. His expertise in machine learning and large-scale model training has been instrumental in building the company's core technology. His focus is on the responsible development and deployment of AI systems. The company has partnerships with Google's parent company Alphabet and Amazon. He played a key role in raising funds for the company which reached a valuation of $61.5 billion in March 2025.

Philanthropy

I am sorry, but I do not have the exact philanthropy amounts for Sam McCandlish. I am unable to find any information regarding his specific philanthropic contributions.

Career Milestones

2021

Cofounded Anthropic

Co-founded Anthropic with six other ex-OpenAI employees.

2021-2025

Chief Technology Officer, Anthropic

Served as CTO before transitioning to the Chief Architect role.

2025

Chief Architect, Anthropic

Focusing on pre-training and large-scale model training.