Candice’s Current Thinking
Weekly analysis and perspectives on the AI and policy landscape.
THIS WEEK IN AI
On Friday, President Trump ordered federal agencies to stop using Anthropic's Claude and by Saturday we were at war with Iran. Tomorrow, big tech heads to the White House to discuss AI's impact on consumer energy costs. These stories are more related than they may appear.
For those already across the headlines, skip to "What I'm Watching" for insights, including why the conflict in Iran has raised the stakes.
THIS WEEK IN AI
AI capabilities are accelerating toward—and potentially past—human-level intelligence faster than most expected. But as tech outpaces policy, we are facing a fundamental governance gap. We haven't resolved basic questions around guardrails, accountability, and control, even as we've already deployed "human-on-the-loop" AI systems into the wild. These questions are becoming urgent as global strategic alliances fracture and nuclear arms control frameworks expire.
This week, I’m tracking a standoff between the Pentagon and Anthropic over how it can use Claude, a Waymo accident involving a pedestrian, and the impending expiration of New START this Thursday—all set against the backdrop of Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s new 38-page essay, "The Adolescence of Technology," which maps a "battle plan" for surviving the risks of powerful AI.
Photo: TechCrunch / CC BY 2.0
Candice Bryant Consulting provides strategic intelligence and public affairs consulting for AI, emerging tech, and national security.
“This is a 1996 moment for AI — the companies that show up in Washington will shape the next decade.”
— Candice Bryant