- Anthropic has shut down access to its newest and most powerful models following a U.S. government ban on the use of the technology by foreign nationals, citing national security concerns.
- The San Francisco-based company received a letter from the government at 5:21 p.m. informing it of the decision.
- The letter did not specify officials’ concerns, but Anthropic was informed that the government believed there was a method of bypassing safeguards designed to neuter the ability of its Fable model to aid computer hackers.
- The export restriction prevents any foreign national from using the technology, whether they are inside the United States or overseas, including employees of Anthropic.
- Anthropic disagrees with the government's finding, stating that a narrow potential jailbreak should not warrant recalling a commercial model deployed to hundreds of millions of people.
- The government action represents a sweeping restriction on AI technology, notable for being issued by the Trump administration, which had previously pushed to minimize regulations that could hinder innovation.
- This decision follows a previous effort by the Pentagon to brand Anthropic a national security risk amid a dispute over the use of its technology by the military.
- Fable is a version of Anthropic’s new Mythos model with additional safeguards built in, which the company initially declined to release publicly due to its potentially dangerous abilities.
- In its blog post, Anthropic stated it had reviewed a report that it believes is the basis of the government’s concerns, asserting that the findings did not indicate a hacking risk greater than that posed by some other AI models.
- The company has called for the government to have the power to block the release of new AI systems if they pose a safety risk.
Anthropic's decision to shut down its Fable model comes after the U.S. government issued a ban on its use by foreign nationals, citing national security concerns. The company received a letter at 5:21 p.m. detailing the government's decision, which did not specify the exact concerns but indicated a potential method to bypass safeguards.123589
The export restriction affects all foreign nationals, including Anthropic employees, whether they are in the U.S. or abroad. In a blog post, Anthropic expressed disagreement with the government's assessment, stating, “We disagree that the finding of a narrow potential jailbreak should be cause for recalling a commercial model deployed to hundreds of millions of people.”4
The Fable model is an enhanced version of Anthropic's Mythos model, which was initially withheld from public release due to its capabilities to identify security flaws and assist hackers. Anthropic has reviewed the report that prompted the government's action and believes the risks associated with Fable do not exceed those posed by other AI models.
This government action represents a significant restriction on AI technology, particularly notable given its issuance by the Trump administration, which had previously sought to minimize regulations that could hinder innovation. Anthropic has called for the government to have the authority to block the release of new AI systems if they pose safety risks.611
“Anthropic has shut down access to its newest AI model following a U.S. government ban on foreign use. The decision stems from national security concerns regarding potential vulnerabilities in the technology.”
Daily Herald