Head of Growth (Anthropic):  “Claude is growing itself at this point” | Amol Avasare (1h 53m)

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• Release date: 2026-04-05
• Listen on Spotify: Open episode
• Episode description:

  Amol Avasare is Head of Growth at Anthropic, which is going through the most unprecedented growth trajectory in history—scaling from $1 billion to over $19 billion in ARR in just 14 months. Previously, Amol worked on the growth teams at Mercury and MasterClass. Before that he was a founder, and he cold emailed his way into the Anthropic role when no job listing existed. Most remarkably, he overcame a traumatic brain injury from a Muay Thai match that meant he couldn't work for nearly a year.In our in-depth discussion, Amol shares:How Amol landed his role by cold emailing Anthropic’s CPO Mike KriegerHow Anthropic is automating growth experiments with Claude (their internal tool called “CASH”)Why the ratio of PMs to engineers might need to flip (more PMs than engineers) as AI makes engineers exponentially more productiveWhy activation is the single highest-leverage growth problem in AIWhy Anthropic indexes 70/30 toward big bets (the opposite of most growth teams)How he uses Cowork to detect team misalignment in SlackHow the company’s focus on AI coding created a research flywheel that accelerated their models—Brought to you by:WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUsVanta—Automate compliance, manage risk, and accelerate trust with AI—Episode transcript: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/anthropics-1b-to-19b-growth-run—Archive of all Lenny's Podcast transcripts: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/yxi4s2w998p1gvtpu4193/AMdNPR8AOw0lMklwtnC0TrQ?rlkey=j06x0nipoti519e0xgm23zsn9&st=ahz0fj11&dl=0—Where to find Amol Avasare:• X: https://x.com/TheAmolAvasare• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amolavasare—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Amol and Anthropic’s growth(03:15) The story of cold emailing Mike Krieger to get the job(08:28) What it’s like leading growth at the fastest-growing company ever(10:46) What the growth team actually does at Anthropic(12:16) The concept of “success disasters”(13:55) Why activation is the biggest challenge in AI products(18:05) Improving Mercury’s onboarding experience(20:57) The importance of adding the right kind of friction(25:10) Anthropic’s org structure(27:06) Why Anthropic focuses on big bets over micro-optimizations(33:34) Automating growth experiments with Claude (CASH)(38:20) How AI is starting to identify what experiments to run(41:07) The future of PM, engineering, and design roles(47:19) Why you might need more PMs as engineers get more productive(51:13) How Amol uses AI to prototype ideas and skip PRDs(58:10) Amol’s morning routine: AI analyzes 20 to 25 charts automatically(1:03:31) Getting coaching from an AI version of your manager(1:06:27) How Anthropic’s focus on coding and B2B drove their success(1:12:10) Balancing growth with AI safety as a core mission(1:18:09) Advice for thriving in an AI-first future(1:22:53) Anthropic’s culture and the “notebook channels” on Slack(1:35:12) Failure corner: Shutting down his startup after raising money(1:38:25) The traumatic brain injury that changed everything(1:46:49) Lightning round—References: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/anthropics-1b-to-19b-growth-run—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

Summary

• 🚀 Unprecedented Hypergrowth: Anthropic scaled from $1B to $19B+ ARR in 14 months via top models and focus, maintaining 10x YoY despite scale.
• 💡 Strategic Friction & Activation: Good onboarding friction personalizes AI experiences, boosting activation; tested across products like Claude and Mercury.
• 🤖 AI Automates Growth Loops: ‘Cache’ uses Claude for end-to-end growth experiments, from ideation to analysis, signaling broader product automation.
• 🔄 Roles Evolve with AI Leverage: Engineers gain most from AI tools, straining PMs/designers; solution: product-minded eng, strategic PM focus.
• 🛡️ Safety-First Mission Culture: PBC structure prioritizes AI safety over pure profit, fostering high-talent, open culture driving sustained success.

Insights

• How did Anthropic achieve $1B to $19B ARR in just 14 months despite starting as the underdog?
  • Time: 0:00 – 10:41
  • Answer: Anthropic grew from $1B to $19B ARR in 14 months through superior models, research excellence, and focused execution, outpacing giants like Meta and Google without their cash flow or first-mover advantage. This hypergrowth persists at 10x YoY, defying law of large numbers, driven by exponential model improvements.
• Can a cold email land you the Head of Growth role at a top AI company?
  • Time: 4:12 – 7:03
  • Answer: Amol secured his role at Anthropic by cold emailing CPO Mike Krieger with a concise pitch highlighting the need for a growth team, using perfected subject lines, personal emails, and persistence. This unorthodox hire shows bold outreach works even without job postings.
• Why is leading growth at hyper-scaling AI firms 70% firefighting ‘success disasters’?
• Does ‘good friction’ in AI onboarding boost activation more than speed?
• Should AI growth teams prioritize big bets over micro-optimizations?
• How is Claude automating growth experimentation via ‘Cache’?
• Will AI supercharge engineers, straining PMs and designers in orgs?
• Can AI agents detect misalignments and coach managers proactively?
• Why bet big on AI coding for both revenue and research acceleration?
• How does Anthropic balance explosive growth with AI safety as a Public Benefit Corp?

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