Rishi Sunak joins Microsoft and Anthropic as adviser: Is it a paid role? What former UK PM said

Former British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday said he has joined US tech giant Microsoft, led by Satya Nadella, and artificial intelligence startup Anthropic as a senior adviser.

“Delighted to say that I will be working with two of the world’s leading tech firms, Microsoft and Anthropic. Microsoft has driven productivity improvements for decades and Anthropic is one of the most exciting AI frontier labs,” Sunak said in a post on LinkedIn.

Sunak will advise Anthropic on strategy, macroeconomic and geopolitical trends. The role focuses on global strategic matters, not UK-specific policy, and Sunak is prohibited from initiating contact with UK government officials on behalf of Anthropic. Amazon and Google-backed Anthropic said that the internally focused, part-time advisory role.

At Microsoft, Sunak will provide strategic perspectives on macroeconomic and geopolitical trends. He will be speaking at the annual Microsoft Summit, according to an advice letter by ACOBA's interim chair, Isabel Doverty, posted to its website on Thursday. Rishi Sunak will not be advising on any UK policy matters.

In a report published Thursday, the body advised Sunak, who is still an elected parliamentarian, to not lobby the government on Microsoft's behalf.

Is Rishi Sunak's role a paid stint?

According to BBC, Rishi Sunak joined both Microsoft and Anthropic as a paid adviser.

However, it was not clear how much will he get paid. Sunak in his LinkedIn post has spoken about the payment, without mentioning the exact number.

How will Rishi Sunak use his salary?

In the LinkedIn post, Rishi Sunak said that all the proceeds from his latest roles at Microsoft and Anthropic will be donated to charity.

“All proceeds from these roles will be donated in full to The Richmond Project, the charity Akshata and I founded to build confidence with everyday numbers across the UK,” he said.

Rishi Sunak's corporate roles

This is not the first time former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has joined a corporate role.

The Conservative Party leader joined Golman Sachs in July this year after he stepped down as PM. Sunak used to work at the investment bank from 2001 to 2004 as an analyst.

He then worked for hedge fund management firm The Children's Investment Fund Management (TCI), becoming a partner in September 2006. In 2009, Sunak joined former colleagues in California at a new hedge fund firm, Theleme Partners.

Rishi Sunak also served as a director at investment firm Catamaran Ventures, owned by his father-in-law NR Narayana Murthy.