Big Tech Accountability is Having a Big February

The social media trial is what happens after a decade of unchecked platform design: the documents surface, the internal research about harm becomes public, and the legal system gets its hands on the evidence. The Anthropic situation is what happens before that reckoning — we’re watching it in real time, at the exact moment when the choices are still being made.

What I’m watching most closely in the week ahead: the outcome of the Hegseth-Amodei meeting, reportedly scheduled for Tuesday morning. If Anthropic holds the line, watch for the Pentagon to follow through on the supply chain risk designation — or not, which would tell you the threat was a negotiating tactic. If Anthropic folds, watch for the language they use to describe it. Companies in this position tend to announce “productive conversations” and “evolved guidelines.” Read that as the sound of a principle being quietly retired.

On the social media trial: the internal documents are going to be the story. External scientific consensus is still contested, but internal corporate research showing known harm is a different standard entirely. That’s the tobacco precedent. Watch for which documents Meta fights hardest to keep sealed — whatever they’re most afraid of is probably the most important thing in the case.

Tomorrow morning paid subscribers can read a full breakdown of Amodei’s dilemma here. And on Tuesday night stay tuned for my very own State of the Union. While the president talks about tariffs and the threat of war, I’ll be talking about tech and the threat of unchecked power.

This is my weekly free post — with a full transcript here. (As ever, paid subscribers get video, transcripts, and written analysis of every story while news is breaking.)

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