Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei is scheduled to walk into the West Wing on Friday for a meeting with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles — a breakthrough in his effort to resolve the company's bitter AI fight with the Pentagon.
Why it matters: The Trump administration recognizes the power of Anthropic's new Claude model, Mythos, and its highly sophisticated — and potentially dangerous — ability to breach cybersecurity defenses.
- "It would be grossly irresponsible for the U.S. government to deprive itself of the technological leaps that the new model presents," a source close to negotiations told us. "It would be a gift to China."
Reminder: Anthropic is suing the Pentagon for blacklisting the company after Amodei refused to allow his AI to be used without restrictions.
- Some parts of the U.S. intelligence community, plus the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA, part of Homeland Security), are testing Mythos. Treasury and others want it.
Behind the scenes: After Anthropic took the administration to court, negotiations with the Pentagon chilled. But Anthropic has hired key Trumpworld consultants — so expect a deal. Friday's meeting is designed to pave the way.
Flashback: This is the second time Amodei has held a high-stakes meeting with a top Trump official this year.
- In late February, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave Amodei until the end of the week to accept the Pentagon's terms, or else. Anthropic didn't.
- Since then, the Pentagon and Anthropic have been locked in a legal and political feud. Some in the administration think the fight is growing counterproductive.
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- Go deeper: Trump officials negotiating access to Anthropic's Mythos despite blacklist.
