Goldman Sachs blocks Hong Kong staff from using Anthropic's Claude amid US-China AI tensions

Goldman Sachs Bars Hong Kong Bankers From Anthropic's Claude

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has removed access to Anthropic's Claude AI models for its staff in Hong Kong, marking a significant development in how the US-Chinese technology conflict is reshaping the AI landscape in global finance1

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. The location-specific restriction means employees in the Chinese territory can no longer interact with Claude through the bank's internal AI platform, a change that took effect a few weeks ago according to multiple sources2

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. The technology was predominantly used by software engineers to speed the process of writing computer software1

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Strict Interpretation of Contract Drives Decision

The move came as a result of Goldman Sachs taking a strict interpretation of its contract with Anthropic following consultation with the Silicon Valley startup3

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. That reading concluded that the bank's employees in Hong Kong should not be able to use any Anthropic products. The restriction extends even to staff visiting from overseas who spend time in Hong Kong, preventing them from accessing Claude while in the city1

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. However, this decision did not extend to contracts with other AI vendors such as OpenAI, and employees still have access to other AI models including ChatGPT and Gemini2

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US-China Tensions Shape AI Access

US AI companies are increasingly concerned about their models being used in China, with fears centered on "distillation" where local actors could train new models through intensive usage of foreign ones3

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. OpenAI has warned US lawmakers that its Chinese rival DeepSeek is using unfair and increasingly sophisticated methods to extract results from leading US AI models to train the next generation of its breakthrough R1 chatbot1

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. The White House recently accused China of undertaking "industrial-scale" theft of US AI labs' intellectual property, though the Chinese embassy in Washington called these accusations "pure slander"3

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. While AI models like ChatGPT and Claude are prohibited in mainland China as part of the so-called Great Firewall, Hong Kong has long operated mostly outside of Chinese censors, with usage limits set by US companies themselves2

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Implications for Hong Kong as Global Financial Center

The restrictions raise serious questions for Hong Kong's status as a global financial center if other institutions are forced to block the usage of AI tools in the city1

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. Hong Kong remains the hub for investment banking and finance across Greater China for most global banks, which use the territory as a place to coordinate cross-border activity including trading, M&A and share sales3

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. The new curb on Goldman bankers' usage of Claude could represent a challenge for Hong Kong as a revived financial hub if employees, especially those who use Claude for coding and financial modeling, are unable to access the most advanced models and risk falling behind other teams or organizations3

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. Local regulators have been trying to resolve some of the confusion around AI in Hong Kong, a city caught up in the US-Chinese technology conflict1

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Anthropic's Official Stance and Broader Context

An Anthropic spokesperson told the Financial Times that its Claude models had never been officially "supported" in Hong Kong but declined to comment further5

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. According to Anthropic's own website, Hong Kong is not listed as a market where its API and Claude.ai are officially accessible4

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. The timing is notable given that Goldman Sachs' Chief Information Officer Marco Argenti said in February that the bank was working with Anthropic to develop AI-powered agents aimed at automating a widening range of internal functions2

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. Meanwhile, Anthropic's Mythos tool has sparked widespread concern among regulators across the globe due to its ability to expose cybersecurity vulnerabilities faster than humans1

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. For now, Anthropic has limited the release of it to just a few major technology and finance firms including Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., and JPMorgan Chase & Co., as part of "Project Glasswing," which will work to secure the most important systems before other similar AI models become available1

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. The situation poses questions for other companies and institutions in the former British territory that have enterprise deals with Anthropic globally and continue to use its models in Hong Kong3

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