Anthropic and Claude Code: Rising Amid Tensions

A Growing Popularity for Anthropic

Anthropic, despite tensions with the U.S. Department of Defense, has managed to capture public attention. This increased notoriety is partly due to its humorous advertisements aired during the Super Bowl, which targeted OpenAI. Meanwhile, the popularity of Claude Code, a flagship product of Anthropic, continues to grow, strengthening the company's position among consumers.

Analysis of Transactions and Paid Subscriptions

A study conducted by Indagari, specializing in transaction analysis, examined billions of anonymized credit card transactions from 28 million American consumers. This analysis reveals that Claude is attracting a record number of paid subscribers. However, it is important to note that this data does not cover the entire consumer base, making it difficult to determine the precise total number of Anthropic users. Additionally, Claude's business activity with enterprises, its main source of revenue, is not included, nor are users of its free version. Estimates of the total number of users range between 18 million and 30 million, but Anthropic has not confirmed these figures. A spokesperson did indicate that paid subscriptions have more than doubled this year.

A Consumer Comeback

Between January and February, a record number of consumers subscribed to Claude, and many former users returned in February, according to Indagari. The majority of these new subscribers fall into the “Pro” user category, paying $20 per month, compared to the more expensive options of $100 or $200 per month.

Advertising and Conflict with the DoD

Data up to early March shows a continued growth in subscribers, with a two-week lag for data availability. Since January, consumers have become more aware of Claude thanks to advertisements during the Super Bowl, which poked fun at ChatGPT for its decision to display ads. These spots were both entertaining and effective, even provoking irritation from Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI.

The conflict with the Department of Defense has also contributed to this attention. At the end of January, several media outlets reported rising tensions between Anthropic and the DoD regarding the use of Anthropic's AI by the military. Anthropic has refused to allow its AI models to be used for lethal autonomous operations or for mass surveillance of American citizens. This dispute became public when Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, issued a firm statement on February 26, as the DoD threatened to harm Anthropic's business by labeling it a supply chain risk. A federal judge temporarily blocked this designation.

Innovations and Features of Claude

The period of conflict coincided with a notable increase in new users. This growth was particularly marked between the end-of-January media reports and Amodei's statement on February 26. In addition to the media drama, development and productivity tools like Claude Code and Claude Cowork, launched in January, played a key role in the increase in subscriptions. The recently introduced Computer Use feature has also generated significant interest. It allows Claude to autonomously navigate a computer, performing actions such as clicking and scrolling. This feature works with Dispatch, which enables users to manage tasks from their phones. These innovations are not available to users of the free version.

Ongoing Competition

Despite this impressive growth, Claude remains behind ChatGPT in terms of overall popularity. Although OpenAI's uninstalls increased following the announcement of the agreement with the DoD, Indagari's data shows that OpenAI continues to attract new paid subscribers at a steady pace, maintaining its position as a market leader in consumer AI.