Colorful past of AI tycoon’s wife who has wiped herself from internet: Epstein link, failed age-gap marriage, bankruptcy and ‘luxury porn’
Cami Clark, the wife of Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei, has largely erased herself from public view, but a Wall Street Journal investigation has uncovered a colourful history that includes a business connection to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Clark, 47, has played a significant behind-the-scenes role in her husband's career, helping to secure investors and set up Anthropic when Amodei and colleagues left OpenAI, making her past relevant given the AI firm's rising prominence and reported $2 billion valuation ahead of an expected stock market listing.
According to the report, Clark pitched a women-focused pornography venture called Eddice to Epstein in 2011 after being introduced by literary agent John Brockman, sending him scripts for a series called American Girl in Paris; Epstein later declined to invest, saying he "can't do sex TV." Clark, a college dropout who filed for bankruptcy in 2009, also had an age-gap marriage at 20 to a man over 40 years her senior, before later dating former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, whom she also persuaded to invest in Anthropic. She met Amodei in a San Francisco group home and married him in 2022.
In short
- Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei's wife Cami Clark had past Epstein business dealings
- She pitched a women's porn site to Epstein in 2011; he declined to invest
- Clark also filed for bankruptcy and previously dated ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
When someone plays a substantive behind-the-scenes role in founding and securing major investment for a company valued at $2 billion heading toward public markets, their background, judgement, and networks become legitimate public concern. The reporting illuminates genuine questions about business connections at the highest levels and meaningful accountability for the judgement involved—including choices to pitch to a later-convicted sex offender, regardless of whether rejected. Before such a significant IPO, understanding how influence and capital are distributed, and the backgrounds of those who facilitate these networks, serves a core journalistic function.
The case against
She is the spouse of the CEO, not a company executive or public figure in her own right, and should not face invasive biographical scrutiny for personal choices simply because she married someone prominent. A business pitch explicitly rejected fifteen years ago, combined with a previous marriage and bankruptcy filing, should not become national news fodder, particularly given that such invasive investigation of spouses is disproportionately applied to women. The framing of the story—emphasising that she has 'wiped herself from the internet'—suggests something suspicious about her desire for privacy rather than engaging with legitimate questions about whether such proportionate scrutiny is fair.
Explained simply
Anthropic is an artificial intelligence company founded by Dario Amodei and colleagues who left OpenAI. Amodei is its chief executive, and his wife, Cami Clark, has reportedly helped with fundraising and the company’s early set-up.
The Wall Street Journal’s investigation traces Clark’s earlier business and personal history. It reports that in 2011 she pitched a proposed women-focused pornography venture to Jeffrey Epstein, who did not invest; Epstein was a convicted sex offender. Clark later dated former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, who reportedly invested in Anthropic.
The story has drawn attention because Anthropic has become a prominent company, with a reported valuation of $2 billion ahead of a possible stock market listing. Clark’s reported role in its growth has brought renewed scrutiny of her past connections and business dealings.
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