Anthropic · Claude · Microsoft · BBC Technology
Anthropic bans users from being 'cruel' to its AI systems
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Anthropic has raised eyebrows by announcing it will ban users from "sustained and needless" abusive behaviour towards its AI.
Key facts
- Used to describe robots in Star Wars games and movies since the mid 2000s, the term made its shortlist of words reflecting the mood of 2025 after last July saw many take to TikTok to share
- You can't be cruel to numbers and maths," wrote Dr Barry Scannell, technology partner at Irish law firm William Fry, on LinkedIn, external
- The Collins Dictionary meanwhile last November highlighted the re-emergence of the term "clanker" for disparagingly referring to AI tools
- Microsoft AI director Mustafa Suleyman, who in September criticised rival firm Anthropic for treating AI like it is human, reacted to Anthropic's update with a melting face emoji
Summary
The Claude-maker said on Thursday it was updating its usage policy to let its tools end interactions where people are "cruel" - something it said it had done in "rare" cases prior. It will now be included on a list of forbidden conduct which also contains bullying others, promoting self-harm and creating non-consensual intimate imagery. While Anthropic said the policy would only apply in "extreme cases" of repeated abuse, it has reignited debate over how they should communicate with AI tools. The company said it would not apply to "common versions of user frustration, pushback, dark creative themes, or model testing and research" - suggesting it would only apply in clearly deliberate instances.