Anthropic CEO disputes Trump AI czar David Sacks’ claims that company is ‘woke’
Dario Amodei, co-founder and CEO of artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.
Chesnot | Getty Images
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei addressed “inaccurate claims” about the artificial intelligence startup’s policy stances on Tuesday after repeatedly facing criticism from David Sacks, the venture capitalist serving as President Donald Trump’s AI and crypto czar.
Amodei said the company is aligned with the Trump administration across “key areas of AI policy,” and that it is interested in working with “anyone serious about getting this right.”
“I fully believe that Anthropic, the administration, and leaders across the political spectrum want the same thing: to ensure that powerful AI technology benefits the American people and that America advances and secures its lead in AI development,” Amodei said in a statement.
Anthropic was founded in 2021 by a group of former OpenAI executives, including Amodei, who left the company over concerns about safety. It’s one of the startups at the center of the AI boom, and its valuation has swelled to $183 billion in just four years.
The company caught the attention of Sacks last week after Jack Clark, one of Anthropic’s co-founders and its current head of policy, published an essay called “Technological Optimism and Appropriate Fear,” which sparked a debate over AI regulation online.
Sacks criticized the essay and accused Anthropic of “running a sophisticated regulatory capture strategy based on fear-mongering,” according to a post on X. He said the company is “principally responsible for the state regulatory frenzy that is damaging the startup ecosystem.”
Anthropic opposed a proposed amendment to Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” that would have enacted a 10-year-long suspension on state-level AI laws. That provision ultimately failed and was not included in the legislation.
The company also supported a bill in California that requires large AI developers to make their model safety protocols public, though there are exemptions for companies that generate an annual gross revenue of less than $500 million.
Billionaire tech investor and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman defended Anthropic on Monday and called the startup “one of the good guys.” Hoffman was an early investor in OpenAI, Anthropic’s larger rival, and remains a shareholder. He revealed on Monday that Greylock, where he’s a partner, has invested in Anthropic.
Sacks quickly responded to Hoffman’s post, and the two sparred back and forth on Monday. In one post, Sacks wrote that the “real issue” is “Anthropic’s agenda to backdoor Woke AI and other AI regulations through Blue states like California.”
Amodei worked to clarify Anthropic’s view on Tuesday, writing that the company’s longstanding position has been that a uniform federal approach is preferable to a patchwork of state laws.”
“When we agree, we say so. When we don’t, we propose an alternative for consideration,” Amodei said. “We do this because we are a public benefit corporation with a mission to ensure that AI benefits everyone and to maintain America’s lead in AI.”
“Again, we believe we share those goals with the Trump administration, both sides of Congress, and the public,” he said.
WATCH: Watch CNBC’s full interview with White House AI czar David Sacks
Intel snapped a losing streak of six straight quarterly losses and returned to profitability in the third quarter.
In its first earnings report since the Trump administration acquired a 10% stake in the company, the U.S. chipmaker posted strong revenue, noting robust demand for chips that it expects to continue into 2026.
Client computing revenue, which includes chips for PCs and laptops, grew 5% year over year, benefiting from PC market stabilization and artificial intelligence PC prospects.
CEO Lip-Bu Tan said in a call with analysts Thursday that artificial intelligence “is a strong foundation for sustainable long-term growth as we execute.”
The chip strength and demand were bright spots, but there were areas of concern as well, with the company’s foundry business still needing a big break.
Here are three takeaways from the chipmaker’s Q3 report:
Cash flow
“We significantly improved our cash position and liquidity in Q3, a key focus for me since becoming CEO in March,” Tan said on a call with analysts Thursday.
Intel landed an $8.9 billion investment from the U.S. government in August, along with $2 billion from Softbank, but has not yet received the $5 billion tied to a deal with Nvidia. The company expects that deal to close by the end of Q4.
With all of those transactions completed, plus the Altera sale, Intel will have $35 billion in cash on hand, CFO David Zinser told CNBC.
The U.S. government is the company’s biggest shareholder, and Intel stock is up more than 50% since Aug. 22, when Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced the deal.
“Like any shareholder, we have to keep in touch with them,” Zinser said of the U.S. stake. “We don’t tell them how the numbers are going before the quarter. We generally talk to them like Fidelity,” another Intel shareholder.
Intel 3-month stock chart.
Foundry
The firm’s foundry remains a work in progress.
Revenue fell 2% over the year before, and it has yet to land a major customer.
Intel now has two fabs running 18A nodes, which are designed for AI and high-performance computing applications.
“We are making steady progress on Intel 18A,” Tan said of its latest chip technology. “We are on track to bring Panther Lake to market this year.”
Zinser said the more advanced 14A nodes won’t be put in supply until the company has “real firm demand.”
Old stuff still selling
Zinser said the company’s older chipmaking processes, or nodes, have continued to do well, “and that was probably the part that was more unexpected.”
Zinser said the chipmaker met some of the central processing unit (CPU) demand with inventory on hand, but they will be behind in Q1, “probably Q2 and maybe in Q3.”
The supply crunch has been with older Intel 10 and 7 manufacturing technologies.
Many customers are opting for less advanced hardware to refresh their operating systems, demonstrating enterprises aren’t waiting for cutting-edge chips when proven technology gets the job done.
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