Anthropic is deepening its commitment to Australian scientific research with an additional AUD $10 million in Claude API credits. The new allocation increases the company's total investment in Australian science to A$13 million since April this year. It expands support across life sciences, healthcare, deep technology startups, and rare disease research.
Expanded Investment Across Three Programs
The latest funding is distributed across three main programs: the AI for Science initiative, a deep tech startup program launched in Australia in April, and a rare disease research stream. The deep tech initiative supports founders working on challenges such as energy storage analytics, satellite collision avoidance, and fire safe protective equipment. The rare disease stream has already awarded $330,000 in credits across five Australian research projects.
Research Institutions and Key Projects
New partners include the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute and the University of Canberra. Existing collaborations with the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and the Murdoch Children's Research Institute will now become multi-year partnerships. Researchers will apply Claude to areas including cancer biology, drug discovery, genomics, cardiovascular disease, stem cell research, clinical bioinformatics and neuroscience.
Applications in Genomics and Heart Research
At the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, teams will use AI for genomic analysis, drug safety and genetic diagnosis. The institute's director and chief executive officer, Professor Jason Kovacic, said artificial intelligence is opening powerful new possibilities in cardiovascular research by helping analyse complex data at scale and speed. Their work aims to make genetic diagnosis fairer and more accurate while generating findings that can be tested in the laboratory or used to support clinical research.
Support for Startups and Rare Diseases
Anthropic's deep tech startup program supports Australian founders who are solving complex problems in energy storage, fire safety and orbital safety. Its rare disease initiative followed a global call in July and has provided Claude credits to five Australian research teams. These efforts reflect a broader ambition to support work that aligns with Australia's National AI Plan and research agenda.
Institutional Perspectives
At the Garvan Institute, researchers are using AI to interrogate biological datasets and improve the design of drug candidates. Professor Benjamin Kile, the institute's executive director and chief executive officer, said the expansion will help tackle obstacles that stand between researchers and their ability to diagnose, treat and cure disease. The Murdoch Children's Research Institute will extend its Decoding Broken Hearts program into stem cell research, clinical bioinformatics and neuroscience.
Local Growth and Future Direction
Anthropic says that as its local team in Australia grows, it will provide deeper engineering and Applied AI support to scientific partners. David Masters, Head of Policy for Australia and New Zealand, said the company will continue to expand grants and fund projects aligned with the national research agenda. Anthropic is also building researcher-focused products including Claude Science and a Model Hardware Standard research preview.
Anthropic's expanded investment signals a long-term effort to embed advanced AI tools within Australia's scientific and innovation ecosystem. From rare disease diagnosis to startup-driven engineering, the program connects foundational research with practical outcomes across health, energy and safety. The company expects the new grantees to accelerate discovery and increase the positive economic impact of scientific research.