Anthropic hacked by AI startup comprising former DOGE staff in just 12 hours

An AI startup says it hacked Anthropic's systems in less than 12 hours and was able to access its internal messages. Cathedral is based in the US and was founded this year by former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employees. Its staff breached Anthropic as part of a bug bounty program where people are asked to reveal security flaws.

According to The Washington Post, the hack led to information like Slack messages, meeting transcripts, salaries and job offers. Responding to the report, Anthropic acknowledged that the Cathedral gained access to a “limited set” of sales, HR and IT systems. It stressed that its AI model’s source code was not compromised and the hackers could not reach user conversations with Claude.

Anthropic said in a statement that they learnt of the breach before Cathedral reached out to them and that access was shut off the same day. The hacking has raised security concerns that external actors could break into Anthropic if a company that was set up only recently can, view echoed by a senior Trump administration official. “If a bunch of kids who have just started a company can do this, then potentially the Chinese aren’t far behind.”

Others noted that the breach was linked to a "hygiene failure" of the third-party software Anthropic uses.

Anthropic IPO

The news comes after Anthropic filed for its initial public offering (IPO) as it plans to advance its AI systems to find cures for diseases that have been around for thousands of years and make lives easier for everyone. "'In California, Claude is helping to shorten the lines at the DMV, and to better serve people on Medicaid," its prospectus reads.

Also Read: Anthropic's IPO sales pitch is the perfect Halloween scare for AI enthusiasts

"We believe that AI is one of the most consequential technologies in human history. If managed well, it could rapidly accelerate scientific innovation, greatly increase economic growth rates, bring cures for major diseases within reach, and solve problems that have resisted generations of human effort," it states.

It further said that AI is capable of "potentially curing diseases that have plagued humanity for millennia, including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, rare genetic diseases and major infectious diseases." The IPO is expected to cross the $1.8 trillion valuation of SpaceX.