US Blocks Global Access to Anthropic's Fable 5 and Mythos 5 AI Models

The United States government has officially instructed AI start-up Anthropic, the company behind the Claude chatbot, to cease access for foreign nationals to its newest and most powerful AI models, Fable 5 and Mythos 5. The drastic measure was taken on national security grounds, compelling Anthropic to disable access to both models for all customers globally to ensure full compliance with the government directive. The export control order was issued by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, with support from the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). The directive prohibits access by foreign nationals, whether inside or outside US territory, including foreign-national employees of Anthropic. Anthropic had just released Fable 5 and Mythos 5 on Tuesday, 9 June 2026, claiming they were the most powerful AI systems the company had ever developed. However, this immense power carries risks deemed too high by US security authorities. Although built on the same technical foundation, the two models have different target users and safety protocols. The decision sets an important precedent of a government directly intervening in the distribution of a commercial AI model considered to possess dual-use capabilities, both civilian and military. For the technology industry, this poses major challenges regarding cross-border operations and global talent collaboration. Access to Fable 5 and Mythos 5 remains fully suspended as Anthropic seeks a technical solution to comply with the government mandate without cutting off legitimate US citizens. This development is expected to trigger prolonged debate on technology sovereignty and AI regulation at the international level.