Opening article
Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar has been appointed to Anthropic’s Long-Term Benefit Trust, an independent body that helps the Public Benefit Corporation achieve its public benefit mission and select board members. Cuéllar brings experience in law, governance, and international affairs to the role. Meanwhile, founding trustees Kanika Bahl and Zachary Robinson have concluded their terms.
Anthropic’s Long-Term Benefit Trust announced the appointment of Mariano-Florentino (Tino) Cuéllar as a new member of the Trust. The Long-Term Benefit Trust is an independent body designed to help Anthropic achieve its public benefit mission.
Cuéllar brings extensive experience in law, governance, and international affairs, including service as a Justice of the Supreme Court of California, leadership of Stanford's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and his current role as President of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Cuéllar announced plans to step down from Carnegie in July 2026, when he will return to Stanford University to lead the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences and the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program.
He has served three U.S. presidential administrations and currently chairs the board of the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation. Cuéllar offers a global perspective shaped by his upbringing along the U.S.-Mexico border and a career spanning immigration, criminal justice, public health, and regulatory reform. His work has consistently focused on how technology affects public institutions and democratic governance—including co-leading California's Working Group on AI Frontier Models alongside Fei-Fei Li, and serving on the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Social and Ethical Implications of Computing Research.
Neil Buddy Shah, Chair of the Long-Term Benefit Trust, said: "As AI becomes a defining factor in geopolitical competition—reshaping economies, security, and the balance of power between nations—the Trust needs leaders who understand these dynamics. Tino's exceptional background in law, governance, and international affairs will be invaluable as we help Anthropic navigate a world where AI adoption by governments and institutions is accelerating rapidly."
Anthropic is a Public Benefit Corporation with a mission of ensuring a safe transition through transformative AI. The Long-Term Benefit Trust helps Anthropic achieve this public benefit mission by selecting members of Anthropic’s Board of Directors, and advising the Board and leadership on how the company can maximize the benefits of advanced AI and mitigate its risks. New Trustees are selected by existing Trustees, in consultation with Anthropic, and have no financial stake in Anthropic. The Trust’s composition reflects a recognition that transformative AI will affect more than technology or business, with significant implications for global health, international security and society as a whole.
Tino Cuéllar said: “As AI capabilities advance at an unprecedented pace, the need for governance structures that marry private sector dynamism with civic responsibility has never been more urgent. Anthropic’s leadership has demonstrated a genuine commitment to thinking deeply about the societal implications of their work—not just the technology, but its impact on global security, democratic institutions, and human welfare. The Long-Term Benefit Trust represents a thoughtful approach to ensuring that as these powerful systems evolve, decisions about their development remain grounded in the broader public interest. I’m honored to contribute my experience to this important work.”
As AI increasingly intersects with geopolitical competition, governance structures like Anthropic's Trust aim to bridge private-sector innovation with public-interest oversight. Bringing in experienced leaders in law and international affairs highlights the industry's growing focus on institutional accountability.