On March 31, 2026, Anthropic entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Australian government to collaborate on AI safety research and advance the objectives of Australia's National AI Plan. Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, met with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Canberra to formalize the agreement. Alongside the MOU, Anthropic announced AUD$3 million in partnerships with leading Australian research institutions that will use Claude to enhance disease diagnosis and treatment as well as support computer science education and research.
A central element of the MOU is a commitment to working with Australia's AI Safety Institute. Anthropic will share findings on emerging model capabilities and risks, participate in joint safety and security evaluations, and collaborate on research with Australian academic institutions. This arrangement mirrors those Anthropic has in place with safety institutes in the US, UK, and Japan, where early access and technical information sharing has helped governments develop an independent understanding of frontier AI trajectories while also helping AI developers improve model safety. Under the agreement, Anthropic will also share Economic Index data with the Australian government to help track AI adoption across the economy, its economic impacts, and the implications for workers. The initial focus will be on sectors critical to Australia's economy, including natural resources, agriculture, healthcare, and financial services. As part of this effort, Anthropic plans to develop initiatives to advance AI education and training within the workforce. Recent Economic Index data indicates that Australians already use Claude for a wider range of tasks than most other countries-the most diverse usage among English-speaking nations-employing sophisticated prompts to accomplish high-skill tasks spanning management, sales, business operations, life sciences, and everyday activities. Additionally, in alignment with Australia's National AI Plan, Anthropic is exploring investments in data center infrastructure and energy across the country, consistent with the government's recently announced data center expectations.
Dario Amodei commented that Australia's investment in AI safety makes it a natural partner for responsible AI development and that the MOU provides a formal foundation for collaboration. He expressed particular enthusiasm about the work Australian research institutions will undertake with Claude to advance disease diagnosis and treatment.
Expanding AI for Science to Australia's Research and Innovation Sector
Anthropic believes AI has the potential to significantly accelerate scientific progress. To that end, the company is extending its AI for Science program to Australia, beginning with an investment of AUD$3 million in Claude API credits for four institutions applying AI to some of humanity's most pressing challenges. New partnerships with the Australian National University, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, and Curtin University will support areas such as clinical genomics and precision medicine, pediatric medical research, and computing education.
A multidisciplinary team from the ANU John Curtin School of Medical Research is utilizing Claude to analyze genetic sequencing data to help address rare diseases. The ANU School of Computing is also integrating Claude into new courses to train the next generation of Australian developers and scientists.
The Garvan Institute of Medical Research will leverage Claude to accelerate genomic discovery through two major research projects. The first, in partnership with UNSW, aims to build systems that translate human genetic variation into insights about how disease operates in specific cell types, with the goal of identifying new treatments. The second, with the Centre for Population Genomics-a joint initiative between Garvan and Murdoch Children's Research Institute-will automate the complex genetic analysis that currently represents the main bottleneck in diagnosing children with rare genetic conditions. Separately, Murdoch Children's Research Institute will also apply Claude to its stem cell medicine program to improve identification of therapeutic targets for childhood heart disease.
The Curtin Institute for Data Science, Australia's largest university-based data science research institute, will use Claude to scale its collaboration with academics and in research projects across health sciences, the humanities, business, law, science, and engineering.
Anthropic also announced its first deep tech startup API credit program for VC-backed startups working on drug discovery, materials science, climate modeling, and medical diagnostics. Eligible companies will receive up to USD$50,000 (approximately AUD$72,000) in API credits to build with Claude, along with resources and community support, as Anthropic builds out its local team.
These investments reflect the advanced work Australian researchers and startups are already doing with Claude and directly contribute to supporting the goals outlined in Australia's National AI Plan.
The visit to Australia marks the beginning of long-term collaboration and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. Anthropic plans to share more about its local team and leadership in the coming weeks as it prepares to open its Sydney office. The details of the Australian government's MOU with Anthropic are available here.