Trump Says He Liked Anthropic’s Amodei in Sign of Detente

President Donald Trump said he liked Anthropic PBC Chief Executive Officer Dario Amodei after a recent dinner, signaling a possible detente with the AI firm the Defense Department labeled a supply chain risk.

“I liked him and his wife a lot,” Trump told Time Magazine in an interview published Thursday. “Very smart guy. Maybe different than I thought, a little bit. Really a little bit different. But no, he understands.”

The two met for a Sunday dinner, the first private sit-down between Amodei and Trump after a rocky stretch that saw a bitter contract dispute with the Pentagon and the Commerce Department briefly imposing export controls on a breakthrough AI model.

They were also at a broader meeting Tuesday that drew together leaders from some of the biggest American technology and artificial intelligence firms to address growing concerns over the technology. Amodei and others have warned of the existential threat AI could pose to humanity and called for either slowing down development or putting in place stronger guardrails.

Trump, however, has signaled that he opposes new restrictions, instead signing an agreement with tech leaders that would see them implement voluntary measures, such as outside auditors to do safety checks. The president has said guardrails risk slowing AI development and giving China an edge in a race between the two economies to advance and harness the technology.

“If you’re going to seek regulation, they can put you out of business,” Trump said, recalling his meeting with Amodei. “But my attitude is, we’re winning against the world by a lot, and I want to keep winning.”

AI has also become a flashpoint in the November midterm elections, amid voter worries about the impact of power-hungry data centers on the environment and energy prices and fears about AI eliminating jobs. That poses a particular challenge for Trump, who has embraced the technology and moved to help the industry build-out AI infrastructure. He’s repeatedly dismissed concerns about AI as a “hoax.”

Asked if he could convince Americans to support his position, Trump said he was not sure.

“I might not be able to. I don’t know,” he said.

“I’m not going to kill a thing based on phony threats. They said that our country was going to burn down because of global warming,” he said, likening the warnings to those over climate change.

Trump also signaled an interest in the US government holding some kind of an ownership stake in labs developing advanced AI models, comparing it to a deal he struck with Intel Corp. Trump was asked if he was open to a similar arrangement with OpenAI or Anthropic.

“Maybe I could do that. I have many deals like that — I do that,” he said. It’s unclear whether such an investment would materialize or if companies are interested in offering the government a stake.

Trump was also asked whether he trusted Sam Altman, the OpenAI CEO, who did not attend Tuesday’s luncheon.

“I like him. Do I trust him? Who do I trust?” Trump replied. “I like Sam Altman. Smart. Dario’s smart. They’re all smart. We’re dealing with a very high level of IQ. Very very high level. That’s a good thing. I like that.”