1. The social and economic importance of AI to Australia
1.1 The Australian Government and Anthropic share a positive vision for the potential of AI to drive economic growth, accelerate scientific progress, and enhance the delivery of services for the Australian people if it is responsibly harnessed and deployed in accordance with our shared values.
1.2 As a trusted partner in the Indo-Pacific region with world-class research institutions, robust democratic values, and a thriving technology sector, Australia is uniquely positioned to shape the responsible development and deployment of frontier AI technologies both regionally and globally.
1.3 Anthropic is committed to upholding Australia’s laws and values so as to maintain strong social licence for investment.
1.4 To that end, the parties intend to cooperate and align efforts in the following ways.
2. Tracking frontier AI progress and promoting safety
2.1 Technical exchanges and collaborations with safety and security institutions, including Australia’s AI Safety Institute, to promote a shared understanding of emerging AI capabilities, opportunities, and risks relevant to safety and national security.
2.2 Anthropic will also explore opportunities to expand its presence in Australia and to collaborate with Australian research and academic institutions, including on AI safety research.
3. Harnessing productivity and addressing economic impacts
3.1 Drawing on Anthropic’s Economic Index to examine AI’s productivity benefits and its broader economic and social impacts, with particular attention to sectors central to the Australian economy: natural resources, agriculture, healthcare, and financial services.
3.2 Anthropic recognises the importance of expanding Australia’s energy supply and transmission, with a focus on firmed renewables, and welcomes opportunities to engage with the Australian Government on infrastructure planning in this area.
3.3 Anthropic supports the Australian Government’s Expectations for data centres and AI infrastructure developers and will align its Australian operations with those expectations.
4. Promoting supply chain security
4.1 Forecasting infrastructure needs for frontier AI development and deployment in Australia and the broader region and collaborating on sustainable solutions that can establish Australia as a trusted regional hub.
5. Supporting a vibrant domestic ecosystem
5.1 Powering the next generation of startups to compete globally, and supporting research, education, and skilling initiatives, including for small to-medium-enterprises. This could include collaborating with the National AI Centre (NAIC) and the Future Skills Organisation (FSO).
5.2 Anthropic intends to take steps towards ensuring benefits to local industry and researchers through access to its infrastructure and will promote and support skills development for workers.
5.3 Explore opportunities for collaboration with the Australian Public Service (APS) to support delivery of the APS AI Plan, including through capability building, ensuring Anthropic models reflect democratic values, and identifying practical opportunities to support adoption of priority use cases.
This MOU is intended as a statement of intent and is not intended to have legal effect.
It does not confer any preferential treatment in Commonwealth procurement processes, grant programs, or regulatory decisions, nor does it limit the Commonwealth’s ability to engage in similar interactions with other companies or organisations, nor commit either party to future arrangements. The parties may establish separate arrangements to support specific areas of collaboration consistent with this MOU.
Signatories
Signed on 1 April 2026
- For the Commonwealth of Australia as represented by the Department of Industry, Science and Resources, by: Senator the Hon Tim Ayres, Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science
- For Anthropic PBC, by: Dario Amodei, CEO and Co-Founder, Anthropic