Anthropic, an AI firm backed by Amazon, announced that it will sell its Claude AI to the U.S. government for one dollar. The action follows shortly after Claude, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, and Goplex’s Gemini got listed as authorised AI vendors to federal agencies. The ruling is one of the developments that have seen the top AI companies tempting the government through sweet deals to use their services to cover more ground in the government.
According to anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, the U.S. has to stay at the forefront of AI, so it is essential that the government institutions be given access to modern and secure AI tools. Selling Claude at the price of $1, the company obviously sets strategic positioning rather than profit: the company is not concerned with profit at present. The intended effect is to forge good connections with the federal agencies and establish the technology as a trusted ally in the case of future adoption of AI.
This approach resembles the previous week when OpenAI had received a similar proposal and stated that ChatGPT Enterprise would be free to participate in U.S. federal agencies at a cost per agency per year ($1). The trend indicates that large AI firms could find their long-term interest in being the governmental favourite. When their tools become a part of the working processes, the agencies can be expected to keep using them and possibly gain larger contracts and generate more income in the future.
The U.S. government has been growing more open to the use of AI as part of a broader trend to streamline operations and make them more efficient. Access to more powerful AI systems such as Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini might enable federal agencies to make data analysis quicker, better decisions, and serve people in a better way. Nonetheless, it also poses a concern on security, privacy, and how such systems will be regulated to prevent wrong uses. Companies such as Anthropic are already capitalising on the idea to make their tools available at low prices with the promise of eventual returns by being influential in the future.
The rivalry amongst AI providers is becoming stiffer, and government activities offer an added advantage by securing a niche. Since the federal government is implementing these systems, it will establish principles and expectations that may influence the use of AI in other areas, too. This is to take place within the short-term profits scheme; it is to gain access as a power striker, to build the trust and position yourself and realise the future state of Artificial Intelligence serving the population.
