Anthropic, a leading AI research company, has been ordered by the US government to restrict access to its two most advanced AI models, Fable 5 and Mythos 5. The directive, issued on June 12 at 5:21pm ET, bars foreign nationals from accessing both models, including Anthropic’s own employees.
The order has significant implications for Anthropic’s customers, as Fable 5 was rolled out to all Pro, Max, and Enterprise users just three days ago. The model is now offline for everyone, with new sessions falling back to a user’s default model or Opus 4.8. Existing Fable 5 sessions will end with an error, and Platform requests to Fable 5 will also fail.
Anthropic maintains that the order stems from a reported way to jailbreak Fable 5, but claims that only minor bugs were found in a demo review. The company disagrees with the government’s decision, stating that the standard applied here would essentially halt all new model deployments for frontier model providers.
The timing of the directive is awkward, as Anthropic had just begun rolling out Fable 5 to its customers. The model is widely used and has been shared with hundreds of millions of people. Anthropic is working to restore access to the models, but no timeline has been provided.
This development highlights the increasing scrutiny of AI technology by governments worldwide. As AI becomes more advanced and accessible, countries are taking steps to regulate its use and prevent potential security risks. The US government’s directive to Anthropic raises questions about the balance between national security and innovation in the tech industry.
The impact on customers is significant, with many users affected in both the US and UK. The UK’s Minister for AI and Online Safety, Kanishka Narayan MP, has spoken out against the decision, framing it as a case for technological sovereignty and pointing to the government’s £1.1bn AI chip investment.
Anthropic is complying with the directive, but is working to restore access to the models in the near future. The company will provide more details within 24 hours.
**Background on Fable 5 and Mythos 5**: Fable 5 and Mythos 5 are high-capability AI models developed by Anthropic. They are designed for a wide range of applications, including natural language processing and computer vision. The models have been shared with hundreds of millions of people and are widely used in the tech industry.
**Government’s Concerns**: The US government has expressed concerns that Fable 5 and Mythos 5 could be used to compromise national security. The directive bars foreign nationals from accessing both models, including Anthropic’s own employees.
**Anthropic’s Response**: Anthropic maintains that the order stems from a reported way to jailbreak Fable 5, but claims that only minor bugs were found in a demo review. The company disagrees with the government’s decision, stating that the standard applied here would essentially halt all new model deployments for frontier model providers.
**Impact on Customers**: The impact on customers is significant, with many users affected in both the US and UK. Anthropic is working to restore access to the models in the near future.
Source: Original article