Dario Amodei, Anthropic CEO, speaking on CNBC's Squawk Box outside the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 21st, 2025. Gerry Miller | CNBC
This is CNBC's Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. To be, or not to be
Buzzy artificial intelligence startup Anthropic has found itself at odds with the White House over regulatory policy for the AI industry. CEO Dario Amodei jumped into the discourse yesterday to push back on claims that the company is "woke." Here's what to know: Anthropic has largely struck a different tone on AI regulation than its competitor OpenAI. The company opposed a proposed amendment to President Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act." that would have suspended state-level AI law.
As a result, David Sacks — the venture capitalist serving as Trump's AI and crypto czar — has chastised Anthropic. He said the company is running its regulatory strategy around "fear mongering" and has positioned "itself consistently as a foe of the Trump administration."
LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman came to Anthropic's defense on Monday, calling the company "one of the good guys." Hoffman's vote of confidence is particular noteworthy given his investments in rival OpenAI.
Sacks shot back at Hoffman, writing on social media that Anthropic is looking to "backdoor Woke AI and other AI regulations."
Anthropic's Amodei said yesterday that the company is aligned with the White House on "key areas of AI policy" and shares goals with the administration and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
2. Tax troubles
In an aerial view, the Netflix logo is displayed above Netflix corporate offices on October 7, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. Mario Tama | Getty Images
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