Trump signals possible Pentagon deal with Anthropic after supply chain risk designation
11 Sources
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Trump Says US Will Get Along With Anthropic After Pentagon Spat
President Donald Trump predicted the US government would have a good relationship Anthropic PBC, a stark reversal in tone toward the artificial company that's embroiled in a fight with the Pentagon. Trump on Tuesday said White House officials recently had "very good talks" with Anthropic
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Trump says Anthropic is 'shaping up,' open to deal with Pentagon
WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday told CNBC that AI giant Anthropic was "shaping up" in the eyes of his administration and he was open to a deal to allow the firm to resume working with the Pentagon. Trump in February directed the government to stop working
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Trump says Anthropic is shaping up and a deal is 'possible' for Department of Defense use
President Donald Trump on Tuesday told CNBC that "it's possible" there will be a deal allowing Anthropic's artificial intelligence models to be used within the Department of Defense. "They came to the White House a few days ago, and we had some very good talks with them, and I think they're
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Trump says Anthropic Pentagon deal is 'possible'
The US president told CNBC on Tuesday that Anthropic is 'shaping up' following a White House meeting last Friday at which the company's CEO Dario Amodei discussed its Mythos AI model with Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The Pentagon's blacklisting of Anthropic
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Trump Is Warming Up to Anthropic Again, Says the Company Could 'Be of Great Use'
On Tuesday morning, the President told CNBC that his administration had "some very good talks" with Anthropic and that a new deal reallowing the use of Anthropic's models in the Pentagon could be "possible." "I think they're shaping up, they're very smart, and I think they can be of great use,"
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Trump says Pentagon deal with Anthropic is possible
President Donald Trump said it is possible the U.S. government may strike a deal to use Anthropic's AI models in the Department of Defense. The move would signal a potential thaw in the high-profile dispute between the administration and the AI company. Speaking on CNBC's "Squawk Box," Trump said
[7]
Trump Says Anthropic Is 'Shaping Up,' Open to Deal With Pentagon
WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday told CNBC that AI giant Anthropic was "shaping up" in the eyes of his administration and he was open to a deal to allow the firm to resume contracting with defense officials. Trump in February directed federal agencies to
[8]
Trump says Anthropic is 'shaping up,' open to deal with Pentagon - The Economic Times
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday Anthropic was "shaping up" in the eyes of his administration, opening the door for the AI company to reverse its blacklisting at the Pentagon. Trump directed the government in February to stop working with Anthropic. US President Donald Trump said on
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Trump Froze Out Anthropic -- Now He Says They're 'Very Smart'
Anthropic is moving closer to restoring ties with the U.S. Department of Defense after President Donald Trump said the artificial intelligence company was improving its standing with his administration, raising the prospect that the Pentagon could revisit its ban. Trump's comments followed a White
[10]
Trump says Anthropic is 'shaping up,' open to deal with Pentagon
US President Donald Trump indicated a potential shift in his administration's stance on AI firm Anthropic, suggesting openness to a deal allowing the company to resume work with the Pentagon. This follows a previous directive to halt collaborations and a "supply-chain risk" designation, which
[11]
Trump says Anthropic is 'shaping up,' open to deal with Pentagon
WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday told CNBC that AI giant Anthropic was "shaping up" in the eyes of his administration and he was open to a deal to allow the firm to resume contracting with defense officials. Trump in February directed federal agencies to
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President Donald Trump indicated the US government may restore its relationship with Anthropic, telling CNBC a Pentagon deal is 'possible' after recent White House meetings. This marks a dramatic shift from March, when the Defense Department designated the AI company a supply chain risk over disagreements about autonomous weapons or surveillance and AI guardrails. Anthropic's powerful Mythos AI model appears central to the administration's change in tone.
Donald Trump Signals Shift on Anthropic After White House Talks
President Donald Trump told CNBC on Tuesday that an Anthropic Pentagon deal is "possible," signaling a dramatic reversal in the administration's stance toward the artificial intelligence company. "They came to the White House a few days ago, and we had some very good talks with them, and I think they're shaping up," Trump said during a Squawk Box interview
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. The president described Anthropic executives as "very smart" and said "I think they can be of great use," despite characterizing them as being on the "radical left"3
.This positive relationship stands in stark contrast to the administration's position just weeks earlier. In March, the Department of Defense designated Anthropic a supply chain risk to national security, an unprecedented move that effectively banned the American AI company from working with the Pentagon
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. The designation required defense contractors to certify they weren't using Anthropic's Claude AI models in their military work5
.Breakdown Over Autonomous Weapons or Surveillance Guardrails
The conflict between Anthropic and the Pentagon emerged from negotiations over a $200 million contract signed in July 2025, which made Anthropic the first AI lab approved for use on the Department of Defense's classified networks
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. When talks over deploying artificial intelligence models on the department's GenAI.mil platform began in September, negotiations collapsed over fundamental disagreements about AI guardrails. The Pentagon demanded unfettered access to Anthropic's AI tools for all lawful purposes, while Anthropic drew firm lines: its technology would not be used in fully autonomous weapons systems that select targets without human intervention, and it would not support domestic mass surveillance of Americans1
.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth responded by designating Anthropic a supply chain risk in late February 2026, a label previously reserved for companies associated with foreign adversaries. Trump amplified the measure by posting on Truth Social, ordering all federal agencies to "IMMEDIATELY CEASE all use of Anthropic's technology"
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. US District Judge Rita Lin later granted Anthropic a preliminary injunction, writing in a 43-page ruling that the designation appeared directed at punishing the company for "bringing public scrutiny to the government's contracting position," calling it "classic illegal First Amendment retaliation"4
.Mythos AI Model Drives Administration's Change in Tone
What appears to have shifted government policy is Mythos, Anthropic's new frontier AI system with exceptional cybersecurity capabilities. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday to discuss the Mythos AI model
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. The White House described the conversation as "productive and constructive," while Anthropic said Amodei had a "productive discussion" about working together on cybersecurity, America's lead in the AI race, and AI safety4
.The model, unveiled through a leak in late March and deemed too powerful for immediate public release, can allegedly identify and exploit software vulnerabilities at unprecedented scale
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. Instead of a public rollout, Anthropic launched Project Glasswing, granting limited preview access to select organizations including Nvidia, Google, JPMorgan Chase, and Amazon5
. Parts of the intelligence community and CISA, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, have been testing the model, while the White House Office of Management and Budget is setting up protocols to allow federal agencies to access a controlled version4
.Treasury Secretary Bessent's presence at Friday's meeting signaled that economic and financial security arguments for Mythos access had reached senior administration levels. One administration source told Axios: "It would be grossly irresponsible for the US government to deprive itself of the technological leaps that the new model presents. It would be a gift to China"
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.Related Stories
Legal Battle Continues as Tech Giants Navigate Washington
The legal situation surrounding the blacklisting remains complex. A federal appeals court in Washington DC denied Anthropic's request to temporarily block the supply chain risk designation on April 8, while Judge Lin's preliminary injunction in San Francisco bars enforcement of Trump's Truth Social ban on Claude across the rest of the government
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. The practical effect is that Anthropic is excluded from Pentagon contracts but can continue working with other government agencies while both cases proceed.Anthropic has hired Ballard Partners, a giant Washington lobbying firm with strong ties to the Trump administration, amid the fight
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. The dispute represents one of the most significant confrontations between Silicon Valley and Washington in recent years, testing the limits of how tech giants can set boundaries on Department of Defense use of their technology while maintaining access to lucrative government contracts. Whether the administration's warming tone translates into a formal resolution that addresses Anthropic's concerns about national security applications remains to be seen, but the shift suggests that access to cutting-edge AI capabilities may ultimately outweigh ideological differences in government policy calculations.References
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