₹13 crore salaries and counting: Anthropic's H-1B filings reveal the cost of winning the AI race

Artificial intelligence startup Anthropic is offering base salaries of up to ₹13 crore ($1.38 million) for some H-1B employees, underscoring the intensifying battle for AI talent as leading companies compete to recruit and retain top researchers and engineers.According to federal H-1B visa filings reviewed by Business Insider, Anthropic's highest disclosed base salary was offered to a "Member of Technical Staff" role. The filings show base pay ranging from approximately ₹1.26 crore ($133,952) to ₹13.02 crore ($1.38 million) for employees under the same designation. The documents do not specify individual responsibilities, as the company uses the title across multiple technical teams.The filings cover only base salaries and exclude bonuses, stock awards and other forms of compensation, which typically make up a significant portion of pay packages at AI companies.The data also highlights strong compensation across several other functions. Member of Technical Staff (Manager) roles carry base salaries ranging up to ₹8.02 crore ($850,000), while Reinforcement Learning Researchers can earn up to ₹4.71 crore ($500,000). Product Design Managers, Product Operations professionals, Technical Sales employees and Research Operations staff are also among those receiving multi-crore base salaries.Also read: That Rolex gifted to an Indian diplomat could now be yours as MEA opens Toshakhana auctionLegal, finance and marketing functions have similarly competitive compensation. Commercial Counsel roles pay up to ₹3.01 crore ($320,000), Finance & Strategy positions up to ₹2.92 crore ($310,000), while marketing salaries reach ₹1.88 crore ($200,000).The disclosures come as competition among AI companies for specialised talent continues to intensify. Despite a broader slowdown in H-1B visa applications following tighter US immigration scrutiny, Anthropic has increased its filings alongside rivals OpenAI and Nvidia.According to the report, Anthropic secured certification for around 80 H-1B positions during the first two quarters of fiscal 2026, signalling continued expansion as demand for frontier AI research accelerates.The company, which develops the Claude and Mythos family of AI models, has also emerged as one of the world's most valuable AI startups after its valuation surged to $965 billion earlier this year. Industry observers say generous compensation packages have helped Anthropic retain employees at a higher rate than many competing AI labs, where the race for experienced researchers remains intense. (Inputs from media reports)