Anthropic hires former California Supreme Court justice Cuéllar as global affairs chief
Anthropic has appointed Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, a former California Supreme Court justice and president of the Carnegie Endowment, as its chief global affairs officer. The company announced the hiring on Aug. 4, positioning Cuéllar to lead policy and strategic international engagement for the trillion-dollar tech firm, which is reportedly preparing to go public. Cuéllar, 54, previously…
Key points
- Anthropic hired former California Supreme Court justice Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar as chief global affairs officer on Aug. 4.
- Cuéllar previously helped shape California’s first AI safety law and served as president of the Carnegie Endowment.
- The role involves managing lobbying and international policy, contrasting with OpenAI’s more adversarial approach under Chris Lehane.
The appointment contrasts sharply with his counterpart at OpenAI, Chris Lehane, who has been described as an adversarial political operator involved in anti-regulatory Super PACs. Cuéllar is viewed by peers as a policy expert and thinker rather than a political operator, having written about AI’s role in government decision-making since 2016. He recently co-authored reports on AI safety, including a 2025 paper warning about AI agent swarms and democratic backsliding.
Cuéllar’s role involves managing lobbying efforts and navigating complex regulatory landscapes across the U.S. and globally. While Anthropic declined to make him available for an interview, sources describe him as high-energy and charming. His background in public law and international diplomacy is seen as a strategic asset for a company facing increasing scrutiny over AI risks and its potential impact on constitutional democracies.
A profile of Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, Anthropic's first global affairs chief, who had helped shape California's first AI safety law in 2025
missionlocal.org · 30 September 2026
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