‘Anthropic doesn’t care about Europe’ — EU officials peeved after AI giant sends junior staffer to testify about safety

European policymakers voiced frustration this week after artificial intelligence company Anthropic sent a technical employee to testify before the European Parliament. The company was expected to provide a senior policy representative to answer questions regarding safety and potential risks associated with its advanced models.

Anthropic assigned Donny Greenberg to address the parliament via a remote video link from New York. Greenberg, who joined the company earlier this year, clarified at the start of the session that his expertise lies in technical matters rather than policy. This led to tension in the room as lawmakers attempted to discuss the implications of the company’s decision to restrict its cyber-capable models to a select group of American firms.

Lawmakers expressed disappointment that they could not engage with a leadership-level official on the political questions they prioritized. Several members of the European Parliament noted that the company’s choice of a junior representative signaled a lack of commitment to the European market. During the exchange, some participants also questioned whether the testimony was being prepared by AI tools rather than personal insight.

Despite the friction, Greenberg defended his company’s position by emphasizing that artificial intelligence is a dual-use tool. He stated that Anthropic continues to cooperate with the European Commission and the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity. He argued that the current priority is to improve cyber resilience as these models grow more sophisticated.

Chair Anna Cavazzini concluded the meeting by informing the company that further discussions will be necessary to address unresolved concerns. Anthropic stated that they remain appreciative of the exchange and maintained that they provided a qualified expert to discuss the technical capabilities of their systems.