'Didn't Like What They Were Doing': Trump Says Anthropic Raised National Security Concerns
'Didn't Like What They Were Doing': Trump Says Anthropic Raised Security Concerns Published By, Last Updated: June 20, 2026, 02:48 IST Trump suggested that the
'Didn't Like What They Were Doing': Trump Says Anthropic Raised Security Concerns Published By, Last Updated: June 20, 2026, 02:48 IST Trump suggested that the administration’s concerns were rooted in caution over how rapidly the technology was developing and how it could be deployed. According to Anthropic, the government believes it has become aware of a technique that can bypass some of the safeguards built into Fable 5. US President Donald Trump said his administration previously viewed AI company Anthropic as a potential national security concern, but added that tensions with the firm have since eased following engagement with its leadership. “We didn’t like what they were doing," Trump said, referring to government scrutiny of the company during an interview on The Axios Show.
Trump’s comments come against the backdrop of an escalating policy dispute in which the White House imposed unprecedented export controls restricting access to Anthropic’s newest frontier AI systems, Mythos 5 and Fable 5. The directive cited national security concerns over the models’ advanced capabilities and the risk of misuse by foreign actors. The restrictions reportedly required Anthropic to prevent foreign nationals from accessing the systems. However, because such controls are difficult to enforce in real time on global platforms, the company ultimately disabled both models entirely for all users, triggering a major backlash across the global technology sector. Trump suggested that the administration’s concerns were rooted in caution over how rapidly the technology was developing and how it could be deployed.
“We had to watch them closely," he said, without detailing specific technical risks or incidents that prompted the initial action. He also indicated that the situation has since stabilised after direct engagement with the company’s leadership, describing a shift in tone following internal discussions. “He made a speech… and responded very responsibly, I thought," Trump said of Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, referring to recent outreach efforts and public reassurances from the company. Despite the easing of tensions, Trump signalled that oversight remains ongoing and did not rule out further government action if concerns resurface. “I have the power to use a lot of things," he said when asked about potential enforcement tools available to the administration.
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