No Mythos for Indians: US govt tells Anthropic to give Mythos to select American companies
The US government has allowed Anthropic to restore access to its advanced Mythos 5 AI model, but only for a select group of approved American organisations. The decision means companies in India and other countries remain locked out for now.
The US government has partially eased restrictions on Anthropic's powerful AI model, Mythos 5, but the latest decision still keeps the technology out of reach for most of the world, including India. Instead of allowing a full rollout, Washington has permitted Anthropic to restore access only to a limited group of trusted US organisations, leaving companies outside the approved list unable to use the advanced model.
The decision comes just weeks after the US administration ordered Anthropic to suspend access to its most advanced AI models, Mythos 5 and Fable 5, citing national security concerns. The move is part of a wider effort by the Donald Trump administration to tightly control the release of frontier AI models that could potentially be misused by hostile governments or cybercriminals.
Anthropic confirmed on Friday that it had received approval from the US government to restore Mythos 5 for selected organisations that help operate and protect critical infrastructure.
"Today, the government notified us that Mythos 5, our strongest cybersecurity model, can be redeployed to a set of US organizations that operate and defend critical infrastructure," Anthropic told Reuters.
"We're restoring access for these organizations quickly, and we're continuing to work with the government to expand access to Mythos 5 and make Fable 5 available for general use again," the company added.
According to a source familiar with the matter, more than 100 companies and institutions will now receive access to Mythos 5. Many of them are Fortune 500 firms and are believed to be part of Anthropic's Project Glasswing program, which includes well-known technology companies and research institutions.
The US Commerce Department has also removed the requirement for an export licence when trusted US organisations allow their non-US employees to use Mythos 5. Anthropic's own employees who are not US citizens will also be able to work with the model. However, companies that are not on the government's approved list will continue to face licensing restrictions, meaning businesses in countries like India will still not have access.
Security concerns and criticism over government control
The restrictions were introduced after US officials raised concerns that highly capable AI models could be exploited by military or intelligence agencies in countries such as China and Russia. Experts have warned that advanced cybersecurity models like Mythos 5 could make sophisticated cyberattacks easier if they fall into the wrong hands, especially against industries such as banking that rely on old and interconnected digital systems.
The Commerce Department told Anthropic that the company had made "significant progress" in addressing risks linked to the model. However, officials did not explain what additional safeguards had been put in place.
Earlier this month, Anthropic said it understood the government believed there was a way to bypass, or "jailbreak", protections designed to stop Fable 5 from being used to identify software vulnerabilities.
The government's approach has also attracted criticism. John Coleman, legislative counsel at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, questioned how companies were being selected.
"No one knows how these companies are picked and why everyone else is excluded," he said.
"This is putting too much power in the hands of the government. There's little transparency and it raises questions about the rule of law."
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also criticised the policy in a post on X, saying, "Extensive safety testing is not a bad idea. I just don't like the idea of the government picking the customers."
The latest move comes on the same day OpenAI announced that it was delaying the wider release of GPT-5.6 after a request from the US government. Similar to Anthropic, OpenAI said only a small group of vetted partners would receive access initially.
Anthropic is expected to receive permission to release Fable 5 more widely in the future, although no timeline has been announced. While both Mythos 5 and Fable 5 are built on the same underlying AI model, Fable is designed for general public use, whereas Mythos removes some safeguards to support advanced cybersecurity work.
The restrictions are linked to a recent executive order signed by President Donald Trump, which created a voluntary framework requiring AI developers to provide certain frontier AI models to the US government for review before they are released to trusted partners. Analysts say the temporary system addresses immediate security concerns but leaves uncertainty over when advanced AI models will become available to users and businesses outside the selected group.
The US government has partially eased restrictions on Anthropic's powerful AI model, Mythos 5, but the latest decision still keeps the technology out of reach for most of the world, including India. Instead of allowing a full rollout, Washington has permitted Anthropic to restore access only to a limited group of trusted US organisations, leaving companies outside the approved list unable to use the advanced model.
The decision comes just weeks after the US administration ordered Anthropic to suspend access to its most advanced AI models, Mythos 5 and Fable 5, citing national security concerns. The move is part of a wider effort by the Donald Trump administration to tightly control the release of frontier AI models that could potentially be misused by hostile governments or cybercriminals.
Anthropic confirmed on Friday that it had received approval from the US government to restore Mythos 5 for selected organisations that help operate and protect critical infrastructure.
"Today, the government notified us that Mythos 5, our strongest cybersecurity model, can be redeployed to a set of US organizations that operate and defend critical infrastructure," Anthropic told Reuters.
"We're restoring access for these organizations quickly, and we're continuing to work with the government to expand access to Mythos 5 and make Fable 5 available for general use again," the company added.
According to a source familiar with the matter, more than 100 companies and institutions will now receive access to Mythos 5. Many of them are Fortune 500 firms and are believed to be part of Anthropic's Project Glasswing program, which includes well-known technology companies and research institutions.
The US Commerce Department has also removed the requirement for an export licence when trusted US organisations allow their non-US employees to use Mythos 5. Anthropic's own employees who are not US citizens will also be able to work with the model. However, companies that are not on the government's approved list will continue to face licensing restrictions, meaning businesses in countries like India will still not have access.
Security concerns and criticism over government control
The restrictions were introduced after US officials raised concerns that highly capable AI models could be exploited by military or intelligence agencies in countries such as China and Russia. Experts have warned that advanced cybersecurity models like Mythos 5 could make sophisticated cyberattacks easier if they fall into the wrong hands, especially against industries such as banking that rely on old and interconnected digital systems.
The Commerce Department told Anthropic that the company had made "significant progress" in addressing risks linked to the model. However, officials did not explain what additional safeguards had been put in place.
Earlier this month, Anthropic said it understood the government believed there was a way to bypass, or "jailbreak", protections designed to stop Fable 5 from being used to identify software vulnerabilities.
The government's approach has also attracted criticism. John Coleman, legislative counsel at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, questioned how companies were being selected.
"No one knows how these companies are picked and why everyone else is excluded," he said.
"This is putting too much power in the hands of the government. There's little transparency and it raises questions about the rule of law."
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also criticised the policy in a post on X, saying, "Extensive safety testing is not a bad idea. I just don't like the idea of the government picking the customers."
The latest move comes on the same day OpenAI announced that it was delaying the wider release of GPT-5.6 after a request from the US government. Similar to Anthropic, OpenAI said only a small group of vetted partners would receive access initially.
Anthropic is expected to receive permission to release Fable 5 more widely in the future, although no timeline has been announced. While both Mythos 5 and Fable 5 are built on the same underlying AI model, Fable is designed for general public use, whereas Mythos removes some safeguards to support advanced cybersecurity work.
The restrictions are linked to a recent executive order signed by President Donald Trump, which created a voluntary framework requiring AI developers to provide certain frontier AI models to the US government for review before they are released to trusted partners. Analysts say the temporary system addresses immediate security concerns but leaves uncertainty over when advanced AI models will become available to users and businesses outside the selected group.
