According to anonymous sources — not an on-the-record confirmation — the White House has asked two leading US AI labs to pause sharing their newest models with the UK’s government tester.
Politico reporters Sophia Cai and Joseph Bambridge wrote on 24 September 2026 that the White House asked OpenAI and Anthropic not to share their new AI models with the UK government’s AI Security Institute (AISI) until the models have been tested by the US government [1].
Always treat this as reported, not established fact. The story rests on “a person familiar with the matter and a senior U.S. administration official,” both granted anonymity. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. No statements from OpenAI, Anthropic, AISI or the UK government appear in the loaded text of the article used for this research [1].
What did the anonymous sources say?
Per those sources, the request came from the Office of the National Cyber Director [1].
Politico says this forces companies to choose between withholding models from UK AISI — which it describes as one of the best-resourced government testers and one that “previously enjoyed privileged early access” — or risking upsetting the White House [1].
The unnamed senior administration official said: “Because they’re American companies and this has been our policy with every new frontier model that comes out.” The same official said the White House wants the US to review models and secure US systems before models are shared with US partners [1].
What we still don’t know
- Whether either company complied, and which models are covered, is not stated.
- The loaded page may be truncated: a direct fetch returned HTTP 403, and the reader view gave only the opening paragraphs.
- AISI’s 1 October blog on resuming evaluations (a separate story) does not mention this request.
The Bottom Line
Reportedly, the Office of the National Cyber Director asked OpenAI and Anthropic to hold new models from the UK AI Security Institute until a US review. That is Politico citing two anonymous sources. The White House did not comment on the record. Until someone confirms it publicly, it remains a report — not a policy document you can cite as settled.
Sources
- Sophia Cai and Joseph Bambridge, Politico, 24 September 2026. https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/24/white-house-asks-openai-and-anthropic-to-hold-new-models-from-uk-testers-until-u-s-review-01091769
