US Government Prepares to Provide Anthropic's Mythos AI Model to Federal Agencies

Gate News message, April 17 — The U.S. government is preparing to make Anthropic’s Mythos AI model available to major federal agencies, according to a memo reviewed by Bloomberg News. Gregory Barbaccia, the federal chief information officer at the White House Office of Management and Budget, notified Cabinet department officials on April 14 that OMB is setting up protections to allow agencies to begin using the closely guarded AI tool.

The move comes amid concerns that Mythos could sharply increase cybersecurity risk if misused. Anthropic has limited the model’s release to a select group of technology companies and financial firms, urging them to assess their cybersecurity vulnerabilities. The Treasury Department has been seeking access to Mythos to uncover software flaws in its own systems. On the day Anthropic publicly disclosed Mythos’ existence, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell convened Wall Street leaders to encourage them to use the model for cybersecurity testing.

The initiative signals the government’s continued interest in Anthropic despite previous tensions. The Pentagon declared Anthropic a supply chain threat in 2024 over AI safeguard disputes, but Anthropic won a court order in March blocking a ban on government use of its technology. Barbaccia wrote in the email that the government is “working closely with model providers, other industry partners, and the intelligence community to ensure the appropriate guardrails and safeguards are in place” before potentially releasing a modified version to agencies.