President Donald Trump told CNBC that “it’s possible” there will be a deal between Anthropic and the Department of War.
“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 an interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box.
“They’re very smart, and I think they can be of great use.”
These comments follow a high-profile clash between Anthropic and the Pentagon.
Anthropic was considered a supply-chain risk after the AI company requested that its models not be used in fully autonomous domestic surveillance weapons during negotiations for a new deal with the Department of War.
This label requires defence contractors to certify that they don’t use Anthropic's Claude AI models in their work with the military.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump ordered all federal agencies to “IMMEDIATELY CEASE all use of Anthropic’s technology”.
The Pentagon is currently using Anthropic’s technology in the war in Iran, as Trump set a six-month deadline in February for U.S. federal agencies to shift out of the platform.
In retaliation, Anthropic tried to sue the Trump administration to try to reverse its blacklisting.
Anthropic lost its lawsuit in Washington to temporarily block the Pentagon’s blacklisting.
However, tensions seem to be easing, especially after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with senior administration officials to talk about the company’s powerful new Mythos model on Friday.
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent were present for the discussion, which a White House spokesperson described as “productive and constructive”.
