Gov. Wes Moore stands by Maryland’s AI deal with Anthropic despite pushback

Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD) defended a 2025 artificial intelligence deal with Anthropic at a time when his party has begun a crusade against the technology.In a Sunday morning appearance on CNN’s State of the Union, Moore was asked about a partnership he signed last year between Anthropic and Maryland, aiming to modernize the state. When asked if he regretted the move, Moore responded, “Absolutely not.” He conceded, however, that critics’ fears were legitimate and urged the government to put up proper safety guardrails around the technology.“People are concerned about this, and it’s not just individual Marylanders, it is not just the tech companies themselves, but it’s America’s governors,” Moore said, adding that he was in discussions with other governors on how to respond to the crisis in his position as chairman of the National Governors’ Association. He then found a way to direct criticism about Trump over AI, who has emerged as one of, if not the most, bullish national figures on the technology.“Governors around the country have been sounding the alarm, particularly when you have a president of the United States who now says the way he’s dealing with it is putting together ‘AI Force,’ but it has no specific responsibility on guardrails, so it’s not AI Force. It’s AI farce,” Moore said, suggesting that Trump’s love of AI was entirely based on his personal business investments.“This is a powerful technology that can actually do remarkable things when it comes to things like healthcare and when it comes to things like human services. But the human part has got to be important in this, and guardrails have got to be established, and we have to work together on a bipartisan basis to be able to accomplish this,” he continued.The Maryland governor said the United States needed “all available options” when devising bipartisan solutions to the AI issue and that the federal government needed to take the lead. The governors were doing their part, he argued, saying he was holding an AI summit within the next few weeks in his state, an event designed to bring industry and union leaders together to discuss the issue.“I’m really proud that Maryland is taking this very seriously. But I also know having 50 different guidelines is not the most productive thing for us to be doing and thinking about,” Moore clarified.“We all have got to be engaged. The governors have got to be engaged, Republicans and Democrats. But we need a federal administration who is both going to say more than just it’s a hoax, and we need a Congress who’s going to actually put a check on that federal administration who’s simply saying it’s a hoax,” he continued.Moore signed the partnership deal with Anthropic in November, just a few months before a political anti-AI wave overtook the Democrats. The deal integrated the company’s Claude chatbot into a portion of Maryland’s state workforce as a way to boost productivity. The Maryland governor was more open in his confidence in the agreement at the time, failing to couch his statement with warnings about the technology.ANTHROPIC PARTNERS WITH IT COMPANY ACCENTURE TO EVALUATE FRONTIER AI MODELS“Artificial Intelligence can be a powerful tool for change. Today, we harness that power through a landmark partnership with Anthropic and Percepta,” he said at the time. “We’ve been clear since Day One that it wouldn’t be enough to rebuild someone else’s broken government—we need to innovate. Leveraging AI will accelerate our push to fight poverty, turn renters into homeowners, and ensure every Marylander can access essential services like nutrition and financial support, quickly and effectively.”More has been floated as a leading contender for the Democratic presidential ticket in 2028, though he has repeatedly denied any intention to run.