WASHINGTON: The United States has lifted export restrictions on advanced artificial intelligence models developed by Anthropic, allowing the company to restore foreign access to its Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models.
Anthropic announced late Tuesday that access to the two AI models would begin resuming from Thursday after the US Department of Commerce informed the company that export controls had been removed.
Why were the restrictions lifted?
According to Anthropic, the US Department of Commerce withdrew the restrictions after the company agreed to strengthen safeguards for its advanced AI systems.
In a letter circulated online, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Anthropic would no longer require export licences after committing to identify and address security risks, cooperate with the government on future AI safety standards, and report malicious activity involving its models.
Why were the models restricted?
The Trump administration imposed the restrictions last month, directing Anthropic to block access to Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 for foreign nationals, including employees outside the United States.
Anthropic said at the time that officials cited unspecified national security concerns, which the company believed were linked to potential security vulnerabilities in its Fable 5 model.
Last week, the company said it had received approval to provide the models to US organisations responsible for operating and protecting critical infrastructure while discussions continued over restoring wider public access.
What is the broader context?
The decision marks the latest development in the relationship between Anthropic and the administration of President Donald Trump.
Earlier this year, Anthropic filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Defense after being designated a “supply chain risk” because of its position on the military use of artificial intelligence.
The administration has also increased oversight of advanced AI technologies despite initially promoting a lighter regulatory approach.
Last week, OpenAI announced that its GPT-5.6 model would initially be released only to a limited group of trusted partners following discussions with the US government.
Industry analysts said the removal of the export restrictions could influence future government oversight of advanced AI systems and set an important precedent for the release of frontier AI models.