Anthropic, the AI lab known for its "safety-first" mission, appears to be in full defense mode. The company is now publicly scrambling to repair its relationship with the Trump administration after recent high-profile criticism.
The move follows accusations from White House AI Czar David Sacks that the company is pursuing a "sophisticated regulatory capture strategy built on fear."
To understand what's behind this political maneuvering, I talked it through with SmarterX and Marketing AI Institute founder and CEO Paul Roetzer on Episode 176 of The Artificial Intelligence Show.
The pushback came on two fronts. First, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman posted a public defense, calling Anthropic one of "the good guys" and praising them for pursuing AI "the right way, thoughtfully, safely."
But the main event was a detailed statement from Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, outlining the company's AI policy stance.
Roetzer noted that the letter from Amodei reads less like a public clarification and more like a targeted appeal.
"This letter, if you read it from Dario, feels like it is written very specifically to their investors and to the Trump administration," he says.
The letter explicitly and repeatedly cites Vice President JD Vance, framing Anthropic's safety-focused mission as being in lockstep with the administration's goals. Amodei quotes Vance's call to "maximize applications that help people...while minimizing the harmful ones," adding, "This position is both wise and what the public overwhelmingly wants."
"He's trying to frame this as, 'Hey, this is your idea.’ We're the ones that are actually supporting this idea,'" said Roetzer.
Amodei's statement then systematically pushes back on what he calls a "recent uptick in inaccurate claims" about Anthropic's policy.
He highlights the company's $200 million contract with the government to prototype frontier AI capabilities to advance national security and its public praise for the president's AI Action Plan. He also addresses claims of liberal bias, arguing all models have bias and Anthropic is being singled out.
The letter concludes by quoting Vance saying, “we should be trying to maximize as much of the good and minimize as much of the bad” about AI.
"That perfectly captures our view,” Amodei said in his letter. “We're ready to work in good faith with anyone of any political stripe."
In Roetzer's view, it all adds up to a clear signal. "This is like a lifeline to the politicians saying, 'Please, we're trying our best here. We see you. We're agreeing with you,'" he said. "It seems like a bit of desperation, honestly."
The defensive post is a major departure for Amodei, who, as Roetzer noted, was "very, very intentionally off the grid" until about 12 to 18 months ago. The sudden shift suggests pressure is mounting.
"Something has been unsettled either at the investor stage or at the politician stage,” Roetzer said. “My guess is both, and they're trying to make peace while still sticking to their beliefs and values."
Anthropic is now walking a razor's edge. The company was founded on a mission of responsible AI, which attracted much of its core talent. If it compromises too much to appease politicians, it risks an internal exodus.
But if it holds its ground and the administration decides to penalize them for not compromising, Roetzer speculates their path forward gets very difficult.
This could put the company in play. If government friction hinders Anthropic's growth, its astronomical valuation could drop, opening the door for a larger tech giant to make a move.
"I could see Anthropic eventually having to fold into a bigger company to continue competing," said Roetzer.