Anthropic investment takes center stage in Sam Bankman-Fried's trial.
On October 10, lawyers for Sam Bankman-Fried submitted an official request to the court, asking permission to incorporate evidence pointing to favorable investment outcomes, particularly regarding AI startup Anthropic.
The request was filed in response to a motion from US prosecutors on October 9, aimed at barring any arguments related to the recovery of FTX customer funds through the $500 million investment Bankman-Fried made in the AI startup in April 2022.
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The US Department of Justice (DOJ) plans to present evidence asserting that this large investment was executed using customer funds obtained through fraud.
Bankman-Fried's lawyers counter this claim, arguing that the prosecution has misunderstood the significance of the evidence related to Anthropic. They "respectfully" requested the court to reject the motion, which aims to sideline this evidence.
Moreover, the defense noted that the government has repeatedly cited Alameda's venture investments during the trial, portraying them as "risky" and money-losing ventures.
In response, the defense should be permitted to introduce evidence of positive investment outcomes (i.e. Anthropic) of such venture investments…
The defense team also stated they have no issues with the court providing specific instructions on how evidence related to the Anthropic investment should be considered during the trial.
It is worth mentioning that Anthropic has recently attracted significant investment capital, including $4 billion from Amazon and $100 million from South Korean telecommunications powerhouse SK Telecom.
As the second week of Sam Bankman-Fried's criminal trial resumes, the debate over the admissibility of evidence concerning Anthropic continues to heat up. Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX, faces seven charges related to fraud and conspiracy, all of which he denies.
