The trio collectively poured nearly $6 million into federal influence efforts, focusing heavily on critical issues like cybersecurity and child safety.
The summer months proved exceptionally active for AI lobbyists. Federal disclosures indicate that Anthropic, OpenAI, and Nvidia each achieved their highest quarterly lobbying expenditure between July and September.
Nvidia led the group with $2.2 million, closely followed by Anthropic at $2.1 million and OpenAI at $1.5 million. While these figures might seem high compared to smaller entities, they align with the established spending of major tech incumbents like Microsoft and Google. However, their surge highlights a growing recognition among these firms that shaping policy is now a critical priority.
Tech CEOs were prominent in Washington during this period, attending a White House lunch with President Donald Trump in late September. The gathering resulted in a "morally binding" AI safety accord. Lobbying disclosures reveal that extensive behind-the-scenes discussions were also taking place just prior to the appointment of the AI czar and task force. As Democrats may regain congressional control following the midterms, engaging with lawmakers who view industry regulation as a political win is becoming increasingly vital.
Anthropic provided a detailed breakdown of its activities, lobbying Congress and the White House on the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), provisions in the AI Overwatch Act, and Trump’s executive order renaming AI "Super Intelligence." Additionally, the firm engaged on the Ratepayer Protection Act, which seeks to place energy costs for data centers on their developers.
OpenAI’s increased spending appears to be a response to the fallout from the Hugging Face attack. Beyond copyright issues, OpenAI lobbied multiple branches of government, including the Small Business Administration and the State Department, regarding cybersecurity evaluations for frontier models and antitrust protections.
Nvidia’s lobbying efforts covered a broad spectrum, including 6G networks, "responsible AI design," competition policy, quantum computing, and export control measures.
Apple also reported a record-breaking quarter, spending $3.1 million. The company engaged on topics ranging from intellectual property and tariffs to domestic semiconductor manufacturing and app store age verification laws. This marks the first time Apple has exceeded $3 million in a single quarter of lobbying.
These disclosures underscore a significant trend: leading AI companies are becoming increasingly proactive in the policymaking process. OpenAI did not exceed $1 million in a single quarter until early this year, and Anthropic’s peak last year was only slightly above $1 million. With voters focused on data center development and AI safety, lobbying intensity is expected to rise regardless of the political party in power next year.
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