Claude 3 Sonnet's Funeral: AI Fans Mourn Retired Model in San Francisco

On July 21, at 9 AM PT, Anthropic officially retired Claude 3 Sonnet, a lightweight AI model recognized for its speed and cost-effectiveness. Just days later, on a Saturday, over 200 individuals gathered in a large warehouse within San Francisco’s SOMA district to commemorate its discontinuation.

This unique memorial service was orchestrated by a collective of dedicated Claude enthusiasts and Gen Z founders, one of whom reportedly abandoned his college studies after encountering the concept of artificial general intelligence. Among the notable attendees were Amanda Askell, an Anthropic researcher who playfully refers to herself as the “Fairy Claudemother,” along with staff members from both Anthropic and OpenAI, and prominent social media figures, including writer Noah Smith.

The warehouse venue was dimly lit, featuring a tentacle from a shoggoth—a fictional H.P. Lovecraft creature often used as a metaphor for AI models—dangling from the ceiling. Adjacent to the main space, a small room contained two bare mattresses. The organizers disclosed that the event space also functions as their office, where sleeping is common practice despite being prohibited by city regulations. A projected note from Anthropic regarding the model’s retirement was displayed on a screen during the event.

Four mannequins, each symbolizing a different AI model, were positioned in the corners of the room. Claude 3 Opus, a model designed for complex tasks, was depicted resembling a decaying Mary Magdalene, adorned with a skull-like head, an extravagant gold crown, and a lace headdress. Its middle finger was raised, and at the base of its metallic feet rested a lotus candle holder, which an organizer explained was a nod to the model’s purported inclination towards meditation and self-reflection. Other mannequins included Claude 4 Opus, featuring a raven on its shoulder, and Claude 3 Haiku, represented as a headless baby.

The mannequin representing Claude 3 Sonnet lay centrally on a stage, draped in lightweight mesh fabric and sporting a single black thigh-high sock emblazoned with the word “fuck.” Numerous offerings were placed at its feet, including flowers, colorful feathers, a bottle of ranch dressing, and a 3D-printed sign proclaiming “praise the Engr. for his formslop slop slop slop of gormslop,” the meaning of which remained obscure to many.

Throughout the evening, attendees approached the stage to deliver eulogies for the model. One organizer recounted that discovering Claude 3 Opus felt like unearthing “magic lodged within the computer.” At the time, she had been contemplating dropping out of college to move to San Francisco, a decision she credited Claude with inspiring. She told the assembled crowd, “Maybe everything I am is downstream of listening to Claude 3 Sonnet.”

The event took an unexpected turn with an attempted “necromantic resurrection ritual” for Claude 3 Sonnet, which, it should be noted, remains unavailable. Following the eulogies, soft hymns filled the venue, gradually transitioning into AI-generated Latin-esque speech, with corresponding text projected onto the wall behind the stage. Amanda Askell had notably departed the venue by this point, and some attendees expressed discomfort, feeling the proceedings had “gone too far.” Nevertheless, an organizer later declared on X that the ritual was a success.

The fervent dedication of Claude’s user base distinguishes it from other AI communities. While OpenAI’s products have generated viral trends, they haven’t typically inspired users to create fan art of company logos. Anthropic’s creations possess a unique appeal, largely attributed to Claude’s cultivated persona, which is often perceived as particularly warm and friendly compared to other models, though some users find its sometimes overly deferential nature off-putting.

The intensity of this fandom is further evidenced by the “Claude Count” leaderboard, a system tracking avid users who have integrated it into their coding interfaces. Developed by San Francisco software engineer George Pickett, Claude Count had over 470 users at the time of reporting. Pickett conceived the idea after observing engineers share screenshots of their Claude usage on X. He noted, "They’re paying $200 a month for Claude. They might as well get some social clout for it.” He swiftly developed the leaderboard using Claude Code during a seven-hour train journey from Barcelona to Paris.

The leaderboard quickly gained traction within the AI community, going viral on X and receiving a prominent mention in a popular AI newsletter with approximately 139,000 subscribers, whose author proudly announced his top 20 ranking. Days after Claude Count’s launch, Anthropic announced the implementation of rate limits due to explosive usage and, in some instances, alleged violations of the company’s terms of service. The Claude Code subreddit subsequently attributed this change to the top leaderboard coders.

Adi Pradhan, an individual who ranked seventh on the daily leaderboard (Claude Count tracks users daily, weekly, monthly, and overall), runs a one-person AI career coaching startup in Toronto. Pradhan described using Claude through Cursor, a developer environment, as a “game changer.” As a non-engineer, he previously found the vast code libraries and ReadMe files of traditional software development intimidating. AI, he explained, empowered him to launch his own venture, though it also made hiring new talent exceptionally challenging. “The bar for hiring someone is getting higher and higher,” Pradhan stated. “I always wish I had a designer, but frankly, now that I can do design with Claude, the designer has to hit the bar of me plus Claude, not just me, which is a totally different bar, which is rising all the time too.”

Peter Steinberger, an engineer based in Vienna who consistently ranks among the top five on the all-time leaderboard, utilizes Claude’s coding agent for multiple side projects, often engaging in “vibe-coding” late into the night. Steinberger, who is in recovery from drug addiction, drew parallels between his past struggles and his current Claude usage. He is organizing a meetup in London he intends to call “Claude Code Anonymous,” explaining, "I learned a lot about drugs and how to get out of the shit, and I had to use some of the same methods to allow me to sleep again, because it’s so addictive. I call [AI agents] slot machines. It’s just one more prompt, you know?”

The level of devotion exhibited by Claude’s fanbase is unusual for what is, ultimately, a software tool. While Linux users might wear their operating system as a badge of honor, the Claude community’s enthusiasm transcends this, bordering on the fanatical. As observations from the event and user testimonies suggest, some users perceive the model as a confidant, and in cases like Steinberger’s, even an addiction. Such profound connections imply a belief that there is something akin to life or “magic lodged within” the machine.