'No dictator-style praise': Anthropic CEO says US govt hostility linked to Trump donations; slams OpenAI's Altman in internal memo - Report
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "'No dictator-style praise': Anthropic CEO says US govt hostility linked to Trump donations; slams OpenAI's Altman in internal memo - Report")
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei (right) slammed his former colleague and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei hinted that the Trump administration targeted the company after it refused political donations and opposed changes to Pentagon AI contracts involving mass surveillance and autonomous weapons. Here are his allegations, according to reports
Artificial intelligence firm Anthropic’s CEO Dario Amodei has criticised his former colleague and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman for being beholden to the Trump administration on issues related to the use of AI in defence and personal security. Amodei suggested that the firm behind popular AI models such as Claude is receiving little support because it did not donate as much money to Donald Trump as OpenAI did. The allegations were made in an internal memo to staff, according to the website The Information.
Political donations and AI policy disputes: Leaked memo reveals rift between Anthropic and US government
Amodei claimed that tensions between his company and the Trump administration stem partly from the firm’s refusal to financially support Trump and its approach to AI regulation and safety issues. His roughly 1,600-word message was sent on 27 February to around 2,000 employees, explaining what he described as the “real reasons” the Department of Defence and the Trump administration were hostile towards Anthropic. The memo came as the Pentagon suspended an earlier contract for using Anthropic’s Claude and other AI models in its systems. Trump himself posted about the issue on social media, with Anthropic declared a “supply chain risk”.
‘Anthropic didn’t do dictator-style praise of Trump while OpenAI donated to him’
In Amodei’s view, the reasons for the US government’s hostility towards Anthropic included its refusal to donate to Trump and the lack of what he called “dictator-style praise” for the US president. Other reasons included Anthropic’s support for AI regulation and its willingness to speak openly about the risks of AI, such as job displacement.
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Amodei said Anthropic maintained ethical “red lines”. He claimed that OpenAI, led by CEO Sam Altman, chose to cooperate with the government and accused it of appeasing employees and regulators.
Amodei noted that OpenAI President Greg Brockman and his wife reportedly donated $25 million to the pro-Trump MAGA Inc super PAC, while OpenAI CEO Sam Altman contributed $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund and has publicly praised the president.
Amodei accused OpenAI of compromising principles, calling the rival company’s recent Pentagon agreement “mendacious” and a form of “safety theatre”. He also criticised OpenAI employees as being easily swayed by leadership narratives.
Pentagon dispute with Anthropic: Mass surveillance and autonomous weapons were key issues
Anthropic and the US government came to loggerheads after the Pentagon sought to modify existing contracts with AI firms to remove restrictions on the use of AI for domestic mass surveillance and fully autonomous weapons.
Anthropic refused these changes, saying the limits it placed on military use of AI reflected American values and the company’s ethical commitments. President Trump reportedly directed federal agencies to stop using Anthropic’s technology, cancelling more than $200 million in government contracts.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth labelled Anthropic a “supply chain risk to national security”, which could restrict partners like Amazon Web Services from collaborating with the AI firm.
Anthropic plans to challenge the decision in court, calling it retaliatory and punitive.
OpenAI’s Pentagon deal vs Anthropic's call for AI oversight
Shortly after the government vs Athropic dispute escalated, OpenAI announced a deal with the Pentagon to provide AI tools in classified environments, accepting terms similar to those rejected by Anthropic.
Anthropic has advocated stronger oversight of artificial intelligence. It donated $20 million to Public First Action, a political action committee supporting AI guardrails and opposing deregulation efforts favoured by the Trump administration.
OpenAI, meanwhile, has taken a more flexible approach to regulation. OpenAI avoided a public conflict with the government.
Amodei has repeatedly warned about the societal risks of AI, including large-scale job displacement, and has criticised hands-off policy approaches.
