Michael Burry Flags Anthropic’s Circular Financing Risks and Compute Liabilities

What changed

Anthropic’s IPO documents reportedly show roughly $537 billion in compute and infrastructure commitments, including:

• $114.5 billion to Google
• $110 billion to Amazon
• $44.9 billion to Microsoft
• $161.2 billion in Broadcom rack leases

Michael Burry says the arrangement also ties Anthropic’s major cloud providers together as investors, vendors, lenders and distribution partners. Amazon and Google supplied about $41 billion of Anthropic’s roughly $141 billion raised through equity and convertible notes, with another $35 billion in notes undrawn.

Why it matters

Anthropic’s spending obligations are growing far faster than its current business. The reported commitments exceed 20 times trailing twelve-month sales and approach 12 times its current revenue run rate.

That would be manageable only if demand keeps expanding quickly enough to absorb the capacity. But monthly revenue growth reportedly slowed to 3%, 7% in August and September. Revenue generated per dollar of compute also fell to $1.70 from $2.08 the previous quarter.

The structure creates a tight financial loop. Hyperscaler marketplaces handled 48% of Anthropic’s first-half revenue, while those same companies represented 58% of its receivables. The companies financing Anthropic are therefore also helping sell its services and supplying the infrastructure it must pay for.

That can make growth look sturdier during an expansion. It can also make a slowdown more interconnected. If demand weakens, Anthropic could face pressure from large fixed commitments while its investors, suppliers and sales channels feel the same strain. Burry compares the pattern with earlier infrastructure booms, though the full $537 billion calculation and his broader systemic-risk interpretation remain unverified.