This was a really dumb move by Anthropic. They can clearly afford to pay more and attract the best talent. Why be so stingy? Focus on growth.

The visa sponsorship angle has to be factored in as well, as they may believe a few desperate for a visa candidates would show up. Happens more than people are aware of.

A large percentage of companies will underpay people or even commit wage theft, if they can get away with it.

Because they're evil. Anthropic only cares about making profits for Anthropic, everything else (including paying people fairly) is secondary.