Trump administration lifts export restrictions on Anthropic AI models

The U.S. lifted a licensing requirement that had effectively cut off public access to Anthropic's Mythos and Fable models, which are considered among the most advanced AI systems released to date. The Commerce Department added these products to its export-restricted technology list on June 12, prohibiting distribution to foreign nationals without special approval. Complying with the restriction proved impractical at scale, forcing Anthropic to end public access entirely. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick announced the reversal, stating that Anthropic has agreed to detect and address security risks, work with the U.S. government on protocols and standards, and report malicious activity. Mythos was initially released to select organizations starting in April due to concerns about vulnerability identification capabilities, while Fable was released publicly in June with additional security measures. Anthropic had already pledged similar commitments voluntarily months before the export rule existed. Cybersecurity experts questioned the restrictions, suggesting they functioned as leverage rather than security measures. The decision followed pressure from competition with Asian AI companies releasing comparable models like Fugu and Tulongfeng. Last week, Lutnick had cleared Mythos for select white-house-approved customers, with OpenAI following a similar restricted release model.