Days before Anthropic took its most advanced AI models offline, the White House demanded that the company strip South Korean telecom giant SK Telecom of access to Claude Mythos. Officials cited alleged connections between the carrier and China as the primary reason for the order.
Anthropic’s decision came amid a separate alert from Amazon, which warned that researchers could bypass safeguards in Fable 5—a heavily protected variant of Mythos released to the public on June 9. Amazon’s findings suggested that the model’s cyber‑capability could be exploited, although Anthropic and outside experts argued that such risks were not unique to Claude.
The convergence of the two issues prompted the administration to conclude that Anthropic could not be trusted to protect its most powerful AI technology. Rather than attempt to police access by nationality—a logistically complex and privacy‑sensitive task—Anthropic chose to disable the models for all foreign nationals, including immigrants residing in the United States.
SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest wireless carrier, was among roughly 150 organizations granted early access to Mythos through Anthropic’s Project Glasswing program. The partnership, which began after several weeks of close collaboration with U.S. officials, also involved Samsung Electronics and the Korea Internet and Security Agency.
SK Telenet’s involvement with Anthropic dates back to a $100 million investment in 2023 that coincided with a commercial agreement to develop an AI model tailored for the telecommunications sector. Despite the recent revocation, the carrier maintains that it has no substantive ties to China. In a statement to a Korean newspaper, SK Telecom dismissed the allegations as “unverified” and asserted that the company’s Chinese activities are minimal—reporting roughly $1.9 million in revenue from China in 2024 and employing only seven staff members there.
Historically, SK Telecom’s relationship with Chinese firms stretches back two decades. In 2004, it entered a joint venture with state‑owned China Unicom called UNISK to deliver wireless internet and mobile content services in China. The partnership expanded in 2006 when SK Telecom invested $1 billion in convertible bonds of China Unicom’s Hong‑Kong‑listed unit, eventually converting to a 6.6 percent equity stake. The venture was largely unwound by 2009, with SK Telecom selling its stake for about $1.3 billion, though a small financial interest lingered, valued at roughly $17 million in a 2025 SEC filing.
The Trump administration previously restricted U.S. investment in China Unicom, citing national‑security concerns tied to the Chinese military and intelligence sectors. In April of this year, the Federal Communications Commission proposed barring U.S. telecom firms from interconnecting with China Unicom and other Chinese carriers, a move that China Unicom warned could disrupt global communications.
Anthropic declined to comment on the White House directive, and both the administration and SK Telecom did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Sources close to the AI lab indicated that the government’s letter to Anthropic focused solely on restricting access to Claude Mythos and Fable 5 to U.S. nationals, without mentioning the Korean carrier or China directly.
The episode underscores escalating tensions between U.S. policymakers and AI developers over export controls and the perceived national‑security implications of cutting‑edge models. While Anthropic has temporarily disabled foreign access, the company has not indicated when—or if—it will restore the models to international partners.
Dieser Artikel wurde mit Unterstützung von KI verfasst.
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