Anthropic’s CEO is about to have dinner with President Trump

Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei is set to meet privately with President Donald Trump for dinner at the White House, according to initial reporting by Axios that TechCrunch later confirmed with a source familiar with Amodei’s plans. The meeting will be the first direct, one-on-one discussion between the two men.

The encounter arrives against a backdrop of public disagreement over how quickly AI technology should advance. Amodei has advocated for a more cautious approach to development, proposing steps to slow progress or introduce additional safeguards. By contrast, Trump has publicly downplayed concerns about an AI backlash — calling it a Democratic hoax without offering supporting evidence — and has suggested rebranding the technology as "super intelligence."

Relations between Anthropic and parts of the federal government have already been strained this year. The Pentagon designated Anthropic a supply-chain risk after the company sought to impose guardrails on how its models are used; Anthropic has challenged that designation in court. Other officials within the administration, however, have taken a more accommodating stance toward the company.

Amodei’s visit follows heightened public attention to both his company and to him personally: earlier the same weekend he was the subject of a comedic sketch on Saturday Night Live. The White House dinner comes as policymakers, industry leaders and the public continue to debate how to regulate and manage the growth of advanced AI systems.