Startup hit with $17,600 Claude bill in Microsoft Foundry

Norwegian startup Vegalabs deployed Claude in Microsoft Foundry expecting its $25,060 in Azure credits to cover the cost. Anthropic models bought via Azure Marketplace are excluded from sponsorship credits, so the bill reached $17,600 while $21,168 in unused credits expired on September 8. Microsoft and Anthropic each redirected the waiver request to the other.

• Vegalabs received $25,060 in Azure for Startups credits and deployed Claude in August
• Microsoft tried to charge $16,500 to its card; the invoiced total reached $17,600 before tax
• $21,168 in unused sponsorship credits expired on September 8
• 4 of 7 support replies were AI-generated, including both from Anthropic