SouthernWorldwide.com – AI firm Anthropic announced on Tuesday that the federal government has lifted export restrictions on its highly capable Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 AI models, concluding a dispute that had been ongoing for several weeks between the Trump administration and the company.
Anthropic stated in a social media update that access to the models would be reinstated starting Wednesday.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick commented on X, formerly Twitter, that his team had collaborated closely with Anthropic in recent weeks. Their objective was to analyze and approve Fable 5, ensuring alignment with U.S. government objectives and reinforcing American leadership in artificial intelligence.
Anthropic had initially released Claude Fable 5 to the public earlier in June. The company had stated that this version included safeguards designed to mitigate risks of misuse for cyberattacks or other malicious activities. A more streamlined version, Mythos 5, was intended to be accessible to a select group of major companies for testing purposes.
However, just days after Fable 5’s release, Anthropic withdrew it. The company explained that export controls imposed by the federal government had necessitated blocking access for foreign nationals, an order so broad it effectively required disabling the model.
At the time, Anthropic indicated that the government’s concerns appeared to be focused on a potential “jailbreak.” This refers to a method that could trick an AI model and bypass its safety features. Anthropic contended that its safeguards were effective and described the vulnerabilities discovered through this apparent jailbreak as relatively minor and replicable with other AI models.
“We disagree that the discovery of a limited potential jailbreak should warrant the recall of a commercial model made available to hundreds of millions of people,” Anthropic stated then. “If this standard were applied industry-wide, we believe it would effectively halt all new model deployments for all advanced model providers.”
Last week, news outlets CNBC and The Wall Street Journal reported that the Commerce Department had begun to permit certain companies and government entities to resume using Mythos 5, representing a partial relaxation of the stringent export controls.
The interruption of access to Fable 5 and Mythos 5, which lasted over two weeks, occurred as the Trump administration grappled with the potential risks associated with artificial intelligence. Concerns have grown that increasingly powerful AI models could benefit cybercriminals seeking software vulnerabilities. Conversely, many allies of the administration express caution regarding government regulation of the AI industry.
Earlier in June, President Trump signed an executive order establishing a voluntary 30-day review process for the most advanced private AI models, in cooperation with the federal government. Mr. Trump had reportedly delayed signing the order, telling reporters he did not want to impede U.S. leadership in the AI industry or risk giving China a competitive advantage.
On Tuesday, shortly before Anthropic announced the lifting of restrictions, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles expressed gratitude to companies that had cooperated with the executive order. This cooperation included efforts related to “advanced model access and guardrail testing and security.”
Earlier this year, Anthropic had a disagreement with the Pentagon regarding the company’s insistence on formal guardrails. These guardrails were intended to prevent the military from utilizing Anthropic’s Claude models for fully autonomous weapons or mass surveillance of Americans, despite the models being deployed in the military’s classified systems.
Following the failure to reach an agreement, Mr. Trump issued an order directing all federal agencies to cease using Anthropic’s AI technology. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth subsequently labeled it a “supply chain risk,” aiming to prevent federal contractors from using Claude for military applications. The administration characterized Anthropic, a long-time advocate for government oversight of AI, as being driven by ideology.
Anthropic then filed a lawsuit, and a federal judge issued an injunction against those restrictions. The judge described the restrictions as “Orwellian” and an attempt to “cripple” the company. The federal government is currently in the process of appealing this ruling.
