OpenAI and Anthropic now out-lobby Nvidia in Washington

The AI industry is buying a bigger seat at the table. OpenAI and Anthropic set records for federal lobbying in the second quarter of 2026, CNBC reported . Together they spent $3.17 million, up 23% from the first quarter.

The individual numbers are the striking part. Anthropic spent $1.97 million, up 26% in three months. That is more than Nvidia managed, and close to Oracle’s $2 million.

OpenAI spent $1.2 million, up almost 18%. It came within $50,000 of Nvidia, which spent $1.25 million. Compared with a year ago, Anthropic’s spending has more than doubled and OpenAI’s has nearly doubled.

The established players are not racing to match them. Five of the “Magnificent Seven” plus Nvidia and Tesla spent a combined $21.25 million in the quarter, almost exactly flat on the previous three months.

Meta led the pack at $5.99 million, though that was down 15%. Amazon held steady near $4.36 million. Google climbed 25% to $3.57 million and Microsoft rose 13% to $2.69 million. Their common causes: trade, China, taxes, and export controls.

The contrast with defence is sharper. The eight largest US defence contractors cut their combined spending 3.3% to $19.68 million. Lockheed Martin led at $4.18 million, followed by RTX and General Dynamics.

L3Harris posted the steepest drop, down almost 45%. Boeing was the outlier, lifting its spending 13% to $2.77 million.

The dollar figures still favour the incumbents. Meta alone outspends both AI labs combined. But the direction of travel matters more than the totals.