California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a new agreement with artificial intelligence company Anthropic that will make its AI assistant, Claude, the first generative AI platform available across California’s state agencies and local governments.
The move comes at a time when the Trump administration has taken a much tougher approach toward Anthropic. While California is expanding the use of the company’s AI, the federal government has recently restricted some of Anthropic’s most advanced AI models and even labelled the company a potential national security supply chain risk.
Newsom says AI should help workers, not replace them
Under the agreement, California state agencies, as well as any city or county that chooses to join, will be able to use Claude at a 50% discount. Anthropic will also provide free workforce training and technical support to help government employees use the technology.
Newsom said the goal is to improve public services while keeping people at the centre of government work. “This partnership is about using technology the California way: responsibly, transparently, and in service of people. AI should not replace the human work of government; it should help our workers move faster, solve problems more effectively, and deliver better results for Californians.”
Anthropic says it is proud to support its home state
Kate Jensen, Anthropic’s Head of the Americas, said the company sees the partnership as an important responsibility. “As a California company, we feel a real responsibility to our home state. We’re honoured to expand our partnership with California’s agencies and to put Claude to work for the people who keep this state running. Building AI responsibly and in service of people has been our approach from the start, and that’s exactly what this partnership puts into practice.”
California Government Operations Agency Secretary Nick Maduros said government workers need modern technology to serve residents better. “As state employees, our goal is to provide our fellow Californians with the best possible service. To do that, we need to make sure our teams have access to the best modern tools, including Claude and other emerging technologies.”
California is already using Claude in several departments
The state has already started using Claude in different government projects. One of them is Engaged California, a first-in-the-nation platform launched last year that gives residents a bigger voice in government policymaking.
Claude also helped build Poppy, an AI tool created by state employees for other state employees. It uses ready-made prompts to help workers complete common government tasks more accurately and reliably.
The California Department of Technology (CDT) and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) are also using Claude Security and Claude Code to boost cyber defence by scanning, reviewing and fixing government computer code.
Meanwhile, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is using Claude to improve customer service and reduce waiting times. The California Department of Health Care Services is also using the AI tool to improve internal work and better support Medicaid recipients.
New portal will make AI easier to access
Claude is the first AI productivity tool that will be available to every California state agency through the Department of Technology’s new Statewide Information Technology Shared Services (SITeS) portal.
The portal brings AI tools together in one place and shows pricing for different business needs, including improving efficiency, increasing data security and making work easier for government employees.
California remains one of the world’s biggest AI hubs. Thirty-three of the world’s top 50 private AI companies are based in the state. At the same time, California has introduced some of the country’s strictest rules on AI safety, security and consumer privacy.
Anthropic’s clash with the Trump administration
While California is strengthening ties with Anthropic, the company has had a difficult relationship with the Trump administration. The tensions began earlier this year after Anthropic secured a $200 million Pentagon AI contract. Later, disagreements emerged over how the company’s AI should be used in military operations.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth designated Anthropic as a “supply chain risk,” saying the company posed a potential national security concern. Anthropic responded by suing the federal government in March.
Last Friday, however, the Trump administration relaxed some of the restrictions placed on Anthropic.
The government allowed the company to restore limited access to its Mythos 5 AI model after Anthropic reached an agreement with federal officials on additional security measures.
Under the deal, the Commerce Department approved the return of Mythos 5 for a limited group of authorised customers. Discussions are still underway to restore access to Anthropic’s Fable 5 model and expand Mythos access to more organisations, according to a person familiar with the talks.