Around 11,000 drivers in California received a vague letter from the DMV that their written test results showed “irregularities” — just days after it was announced that the DMV and other state agencies had begun using Anthropic’s Claude AI tools.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles says roughly 11,000 drivers who passed the state’s written exam — now officially called the electronic “knowledge test” — between July 2025 and April 2026 must retake it within 30 days or risk having their licenses canceled, as CBS Sacramento reports.
The agency sent a vague letter to affected drivers stating that officials detected unspecified “irregularities” in their test results, and recipients say they have been unable to get further information from the DMV.
Sacramento resident David Specht, who received one of the letters, said at first he thought the DMV was accusing him of cheating. After calling the agency, which reportedly informed him that many people had received the same notice — but offered no explanation, Specht started to wonder whether the issue could stem from the DMV's own testing system.
“My other thought is that something is wrong with their system on the back end,” Specht told CBS Sacramento. “Maybe they botched some data and now they can't tell who passed, who failed.”
While no connection has been confirmed, as SFist reported earlier this week, Governor Gavin Newsom's office announced that state and local agencies were being given access to Anthropic's Claude AI tools through a state portal, saying the DMV had already begun using them to reduce customer service wait times. In a statement, the DMV said, “Ensuring the integrity of our testing process is essential.”
Affected drivers must schedule an appointment to retake the knowledge test within 30 days, as walk-ins are not being accepted, and bring the letter with them.
Related: California Partners With Anthropic to Bring Claude AI Tools to State, Local Agencies
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