What happened
OpenAI and Anthropic collectively spent $3.17 million on federal lobbying in Q2 2026, a 23% increase from Q1. Anthropic's spending rose 26% to $1.97 million, surpassing Nvidia's $1.25 million, while OpenAI's increased nearly 18% to $1.2 million, nearly matching Nvidia. Both AI developers nearly doubled their Q2 2025 expenditures, lobbying on cybersecurity, copyright, cloud computing, and defence procurement. This contrasts with the "Magnificent Seven" tech companies' flat $21.25 million and defence contractors' 3.3% reduction to $19.68 million.
Why it matters
AI developers are rapidly shaping policy, with Anthropic and OpenAI's lobbying spend growth outpacing established tech and defence sectors. Anthropic's $1.97 million Q2 spend exceeded Nvidia's, demonstrating a direct investment in influencing legislation on cybersecurity, copyright, and defence procurement. This shift means procurement teams and security architects must anticipate a regulatory environment increasingly shaped by frontier AI model developers.
