Regardless of the final outcome for Anthropic’s dispute with the Department of Defense, the attention it has garnered—combined with the company’s humorous Super Bowl advertisements that critiqued OpenAI and the escalating popularity of Claude Code—has boosted Anthropic’s consumer appeal to an all-time high.
An analysis of billions of anonymized credit card transactions from approximately 28 million U.S. consumers, conducted for TechCrunch by Indagari, a firm specializing in consumer transaction analysis, indicates that Claude is acquiring paid subscribers at an unprecedented rate.
However, as with all extensive data analyses, certain limitations exist. While this data is substantial, it does not encompass every consumer, meaning Indagari cannot calculate Anthropic’s precise total current or new user figures. It also excludes Claude’s crucial enterprise business and its free-tier users (those not financially contributing to Anthropic). Estimates for total Claude consumer users vary significantly (ranging from 18 million to 30 million), but Anthropic has not released this specific data. Nonetheless, a company spokesperson did inform TechCrunch that Claude’s paid subscriptions have more than doubled this year.
Notably, consumers opened their wallets for Claude in record numbers between January and February. Furthermore, Indagari reported to TechCrunch that previous users also returned to Claude in record numbers during February.
Indagari states that the majority of new subscribers are opting for its lowest tier, “Pro” users, priced at $20 per month, compared to the $100 or $200 per month for higher tiers.
Data extending through early March confirms that subscriber growth is persisting. (This data is available with a two-week delay.)
To recap why consumers may have become significantly more aware of Claude since January: Anthropic aired several Super Bowl commercials that satirized ChatGPT’s decision to display ads to its users, promising Claude would never follow suit. The advertisements were effective and amusing (and also annoyed OpenAI CEO Sam Altman).
However, the larger controversy erupted in late January when various media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal and Axios, began reporting on an intensifying conflict between Anthropic and the DoD. At its core, the disagreement revolved around the military’s permitted and prohibited uses of Anthropic’s AI.
Anthropic declined to permit the DoD to utilize its AI models for lethal autonomous operations (AI with the potential to cause fatalities) or broad surveillance of American citizens. This disagreement became increasingly public, with Anthropic’s CEO Dario Amodei issuing a firm public statement on February 26 amidst the DoD’s threats to harm Anthropic’s business by classifying the company as a supply risk. The DoD proceeded with this classification. Legal actions are now underway, although a federal judge this week temporarily blocked the department’s designation.
New user growth surged dramatically during this period. The increase was particularly pronounced between the late January media reports and Amodei’s statement on February 26.
Beyond the unfolding drama, Claude Code and Claude Cowork—developer and productivity tools released in January—have also been key drivers of subscriptions. The Computer Use feature, launched this week, has similarly sparked a surge, Anthropic informed TechCrunch. This feature enables Claude to independently navigate a computer, performing actions like clicking, scrolling, and interacting on its own. It functions in conjunction with Dispatch, which allows users to assign tasks from their phones. These capabilities are not available to free-tier users.
Nevertheless, despite Anthropic’s substantial growth among U.S. consumers willing to pay for AI, Claude still significantly trails behind ChatGPT.
While OpenAI’s uninstalls spiked immediately after it announced an agreement with the DoD—a move that contrasted sharply with Anthropic’s safety position—Indagari’s data indicates that OpenAI continues to acquire new paid subscribers at a rapid pace and remains the foremost consumer AI platform.