Anthropic and Trump: A Conflict That Could Boost Sales

Anthropic Surpasses OpenAI Despite Political Tensions

Anthropic, a major player in the field of artificial intelligence, is undergoing a significant transformation. Last May, the company managed to surpass OpenAI in terms of market share for commercial spending, according to data provided by Ramp. This success is accompanied by an impressive fundraising round of $65 billion, bringing its valuation to $965 billion, thus exceeding that of OpenAI. This favorable context has allowed Anthropic to consider an initial public offering, supported by a profitable first quarter. In June, the company filed confidential documents for this IPO.

Conflict with the Trump Administration: A Controversial Ban

Despite these successes, Anthropic is facing political obstacles. The Trump administration has recently intensified its actions against the company by demanding a ban on its advanced models for non-Americans, including its own employees. The models in question, Mythos 5 and Fable 5, have been pulled from the market following this directive. The White House invoked an obscure regulation on export controls to justify this ban, although the precise reasons remain unclear. Rumors suggest that hackers may have circumvented the protections of Fable 5, prompting Anthropic to limit its distribution.

Refusal to Cooperate and Supply Chain Risks

This conflict comes after Anthropic refused to collaborate with the government on mass surveillance projects and the development of autonomous weapons. In response, in March, the Trump administration labeled the company as a risk to the supply chain. However, these tensions have not hindered Anthropic's sales to businesses, which seem to be benefiting from this unintended publicity.

Sustained Business Growth Despite Controversies

According to Ara Kharazian, chief economist at Ramp, the conflict with the Trump administration could paradoxically strengthen Anthropic's position in the market. Ramp's data shows that the month in which the Department of Defense designated the company as a risk was the best month for the adoption of its models by businesses. The aura of danger associated with its models appears to attract customer interest.

Opus Models Leading Business Preferences

Although Ramp's data does not allow for precise quantification of the financial impact of the withdrawal of Mythos and Fable 5, it reveals a growing use of Anthropic's Opus models. In May, Anthropic's market share in AI subscriptions increased by 2.5 percentage points to 41%, surpassing OpenAI, which remains stable at 39.5%. Companies continue to invest heavily in API calls for activities such as coding, where Anthropic's Claude Code is particularly favored. Ramp's data comes from over 70,000 companies using its platform.

The Future of Anthropic Amid Uncertainties and Opportunities

Even though Ramp cannot always identify the specific models used by companies, it is clear that recent versions of Claude Opus dominate spending. Anthropic recently launched a new version, Opus 4.8, at the end of May. Although Mythos has had limited availability since April and Fable 5 was quickly withdrawn, the appeal of Anthropic's models remains strong. OpenAI still leads Anthropic significantly in terms of overall consumer usage, according to new data from Sensor Tower.

Potential Impact on the IPO

It remains uncertain how this conflict with the White House will influence Anthropic's ambitions to go public. Public investors are generally cautious about companies involved in government controversies. However, current figures show that Anthropic's models continue to attract businesses, which could work in its favor in the long run.