US Commerce chief says Anthropic back on 'right side' with Trump, Axios reports

On September 2, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stated that AI company Anthropic has returned to the favorable side of the Trump administration, according to an Axios report. The Commerce Department's decision was based on a recent interview that was reported by Axios.

The administration had previously barred Anthropic from participating in certain military contracts due to the company's refusal to allow U.S. access to its Claude AI models for purposes like domestic surveillance or the creation of autonomous weapons. In response to these restrictions, Anthropic filed a lawsuit in a California court.

However, on August 27, a U.S. judge ruled in Anthropic's favor, siding with the company in its legal battle against the American military regarding AI safety on the battlefield. As of now, Anthropic and the Commerce Department have not provided any further comment to Reuters regarding this matter.

Earlier that day, Anthropic co-founder Tom Brown made an appearance at a tech-focused G20 event held in North Carolina. During his speech, Brown emphasized the significance of data centers and urged participating officials to consider granting permits for their construction in their respective countries.