The Claude AI assistant app from Anthropic surged to the top position on Apple’s U.S. free app rankings late on Saturday, following attempts by the Trump administration to impede the use of the startup’s technology by government entities.
This surge in popularity implies that Anthropic is capitalizing on its media presence, which arises from its stance against deploying its models for extensive domestic surveillance or fully autonomous weapons.
President Donald Trump expressed in a post on Truth Social, “The Leftwing extremists at Anthropic have made an ABYSMAL ERROR in attempting to COERCE the Department of Defense, insisting they adhere to their Terms of Service instead of the Constitution.”
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stated that he requested Anthropic be identified as a supply-chain threat to national security, thus prohibiting U.S. defense contractors from using Anthropic tools.
According to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, “It is the Department’s right to choose contractors that best align with their objectives,” in a statement. “However, given the significant value Anthropic’s technology brings to our military, we hope for a reassessment.”
Historically, other AI chat applications have received greater consumer popularity than Claude. OpenAI’s ChatGPT ranked No. 2 in the App Store on Saturday, while Google’s Gemini stood at No. 4.
This month, the Claude iOS app has gained traction. On January 30, it was placed at No. 131 in the U.S. and has been fluctuating in the top 20 for most of February, as per analytics firm Sensor Tower. The data indicates that ChatGPT has maintained the No. 1 position for the majority of February.
Anthropic’s number of free users has surged more than 60% since January, with the daily sign-ups tripling since November, hitting a new record daily this week, as reported by a spokesperson via email. Additionally, paying subscribers have more than doubled this year, according to the spokesperson.
Over the past year, Anthropic—established in 2021 by former employees of OpenAI—has experienced growth as a provider of models for coding and general corporate applications. OpenAI, which has over 900 million weekly users of ChatGPT, has been addressing Anthropic’s business growth by forming partnerships with consulting firms like Accenture and Capgemini.
On Friday night, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced that the startup had secured an agreement with the U.S. Defense Department for the utilization of its models.
Shortly after, pop star Katy Perry shared a screenshot of Anthropic’s Pro subscription for consumers, featuring a heart overlay.
WATCH: Sec. Pete Hegseth instructs Pentagon to classify Anthropic supply-chain threat
