NBA player Thompson shares his early investment in Anthropic; over dinner, he discusses AI and says it made him “write a check”

NBA player Tristan Thompson disclosed in a podcast interview on May 15 with Market Bubble that he had invested in the AI company Anthropic early on. According to Thompson, the investment stemmed from his exposure to the tech startup circle during NBA-related dinners in Silicon Valley, where a Silicon Valley friend introduced him; after deep conversations, he decided to bet on the AI track.

Confirmed Details of the Investment in Anthropic: From NBA Dinners to SPV Mode

Investment Cause (Confirmed): While playing against the Golden State Warriors, Thompson attended an NBA-related dinner in Silicon Valley that was introduced by a Silicon Valley friend who connected him with people in the AI circle. After in-depth exchanges, he became interested in the prospects for AI development and completed an early investment in Anthropic. The specific investment amount and timing were not disclosed.

SPV Mode Expansion (Confirmed): After completing the initial investment, Thompson entered more early-stage projects through SPV, inviting friends around him to come together to form a larger check so they could get earlier access to high-quality projects. He said, “After that, they opened up a lot of opportunities for me.”

Anthropic’s Current Fundraising Situation

According to a report by Bloomberg, Anthropic is currently in talks to:

Fundraising Size: $30 billion

Valuation: $900 billion

Anthropic is an AI safety and research company that develops the AI assistant Claude.

Thompson’s AI Business Expansion: Co-founder of TracyAI

Thompson is currently co-founding an AI-driven sports analytics agent company, TracyAI, serving as Chief Content Officer and Chief Advisor (per a report by Sports Business Journal). TracyAI has been trained using existing basketball statistics data and media reports, enabling it to respond to voice and text queries and provide real-time analysis and statistics. Thompson said, “It can do some things that analysts can’t, because they don’t have the time to collect all the information and organize it into a response.”

FAQ

How did Thompson first get in touch with Anthropic?

According to Thompson’s account on the Market Bubble podcast, while he was competing against the Golden State Warriors as part of his team, he attended an NBA-related dinner in Silicon Valley, introduced him to people in the AI circle through a Silicon Valley friend. After in-depth conversations, he decided to invest in Anthropic. The specific investment timing was not disclosed.

What are the advantages of the SPV model in early tech investing?

An SPV allows many investors to pool capital to enter an early-stage project as a single entity, usually enabling more favorable terms or earlier entry timing than investing directly as an individual. Through SPV, Thompson gained earlier access to high-quality projects and invited friends to help form a larger check.

What does the trend of NBA players investing in AI reflect?

Thompson said that many NBA players are now asking him what Cryptocurrency they should buy; his advice is, “Hold long-term, and look further ahead—just like how you believed you could make it into the NBA back then.” His case is a snapshot of the broader trend of professional athletes getting involved in Silicon Valley AI and tech investment.