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Trump administration shifts tone with Anthropic, replacing CEO Dario Amodei with cofounder Tom Brown in export-control talks over Claude Fable 5 model.

WIRED AI1d ago5 min read
Trump administration shifts tone with Anthropic, replacing CEO Dario Amodei with cofounder Tom Brown in export-control talks over Claude Fable 5 model.

Key takeaway

The Trump administration has begun holding talks with Anthropic about potentially lifting export controls on its Claude Fable 5 model after replacing CEO Dario Amodei with cofounder Tom Brown in negotiations. The administration had restricted the model over concerns that guardrails could be bypassed, but sees Brown as more willing to engage constructively. Lawmakers have requested clarity on what Anthropic must demonstrate to restore public access, with answers due by June 26.

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3 Key Points

  • What happened

    The Trump administration has been holding multiple calls with Anthropic in recent days about potentially lifting export controls on the company's Claude Fable 5 AI model, which went offline on June 12 after the National Security Agency identified ways to disable guardrails. Cofounder Tom Brown and public policy chief Sarah Heck have been leading Anthropic's outreach, replacing CEO Dario Amodei in these talks.

  • Why it matters

    The administration reportedly found Amodei difficult to work with and unwilling to listen to concerns about jailbreaks—the ability to bypass safety constraints in AI models. Brown's willingness to engage directly signals a potential path forward for Anthropic to restore access to its restricted models, though the timeline and specific requirements remain unclear.

  • What to watch

    A bipartisan group of lawmakers sent Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick a list of questions about criteria and timeline for restoring public access to Fable 5, demanding responses by June 26. The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security manages the export controls and has not yet indicated whether it will meet that deadline.

FAQ

Why were export controls imposed on Claude Fable 5 in the first place?
The National Security Agency affirmed there were ways to disable guardrails and access the more powerful capabilities of Anthropic's restricted Mythos model, prompting the export controls that took the model offline on June 12.
What is the administration asking Anthropic to prove?
According to people familiar with the talks, conversations have focused on trying to establish what level of proof from Anthropic's side might alleviate the administration's concerns about jailbreaks of Fable 5.

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