Anthropic and OpenAI hire ex-Trump officials to navigate Washington ties

Anthropic and OpenAI are recruiting former officials from the Trump administration for senior roles as the artificial intelligence sector works to strengthen its ties with the U.S. government, amid a growing view that frontier technology is a national security issue.

This year, Anthropic appointed at least two former Trump officials: one to its board of directors and another as the head of its frontier compute strategy. OpenAI has hired at least three individuals from the president's administration to work across strategy and special projects.

Michelle Nie Duncan, a visiting fellow with the technology and national security program at the Center for a New American Security, told CNBC that frontier AI companies recognize the Trump administration holds significant levers over their business. These include federal procurement, supply-chain designations, and export controls. "They have learned from the Anthropic episode that it pays to be on the good side of the White House," Duncan said.

A U.S. appeals court upheld a Pentagon designation of Anthropic as a supply chain risk in September, following a public dispute between the parties earlier in the year. While President Donald Trump has described AI safety concerns as a "hoax" and advocated for industry self-regulation, he has also stated that the Department of Justice and other law enforcement bodies could rein in AI.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has sought to smooth his relationship with the president in recent months. He joined a lunch between Trump and AI executives and dined with the president in September. In September, Sihao Huang joined Anthropic as head of frontier compute strategy. Previously, Huang served as a senior policy advisor for AI and emerging technology at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). His website notes he led the AI team at OSTP while coordinating national security, science policy, and semiconductor issues. Huang stated in a post on X that he will work on Anthropic's infrastructure expansion and planning for rapid AI progress.

In February, Anthropic appointed Chris Liddell to its board. Liddell served as deputy White House chief of staff during Trump's first term. The company has been securing infrastructure for model training and serving, striking a roughly $45 billion cloud deal with neocloud Nscale, which CNBC reported in August.

OpenAI confirmed last week that Thomas Lind joined the company to lead cyber and strategic risk on its national security policy team. Lind previously led AI policy at the Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD), the principal advisor to the president on cybersecurity policy and strategy. Sasha Baker, who heads OpenAI's national security policy team after serving as deputy under secretary of defense for policy under President Joe Biden, said Lind's expertise is important as AI becomes central to the national security agenda.

In July, Dean Ball joined OpenAI as head of strategic futures. Ball served as a senior policy advisor at OSTP in 2025 and helped draft the Trump administration's America's AI Action Plan. OpenAI Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon said Ball will help pressure-test assumptions regarding frontier safety, economic impacts, and government-company relations. In March, OpenAI hired Peter Bowman-Davis to work on model training and hardware engineering; he previously served as Chief AI officer at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Both companies are currently hiring for multiple political engagement roles. Duncan noted that with OpenAI and Anthropic preparing for some of the largest IPOs of all time, officials see an opportunity to be part of something historic. The labs can offer compensation packages beyond those available in the public sector. "The AI labs are becoming some of the most consequential institutions in the world," Duncan said, adding that for officials focused on shaping AI governance, leverage currently lies inside the labs.