Ban on foreign access to Anthropic models highlights need for AI sovereignty

Anthropic's ban of foreign nationals' access to its most advanced artificial intelligence (AI) models in response to a U.S. government order highlights how cutting-edge AI tools have effectively become strategic assets subject to government export controls, experts said Sunday. With the Korean government and firms restricted from accessing those models, the move has reinforced calls for Korea to hedge against such risks through a more strategic approach and by strengthening its AI sovereignty. Anthropic on Friday cut off foreign access to its Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models, saying the U.S. government believes there is a method of bypassing a safeguard against using the model to find cybersecurity holes. Mythos 5 is Anthropic's security-focused model designed to identify software vulnerabilities at an expert level, while Fable 5 is a safety-tuned version developed for broader public deployment. The latest restrictions were imposed in the form of a U.S. export control measure, according to Anthropic. News website Semafor reported that the move was prompted by concerns that a China-linked grou