Anthropic brings Claude memory to free users
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- Anthropic extended Claude's memory feature to free-plan users, adding a new prompt and dedicated import tool that copies data from competitors including OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini so switchers don't have to rebuild context from scratch.
- The import/export option had been available since October to paid subscribers; free users can now enable memory by navigating to "settings" then "capabilities," the same menu housing the new import tool.
- Anthropic is rolling out the upgrade as Claude's popularity rises, a surge the company attributes to tools including Claude Code and Claude Cowork.
- Last month Anthropic launched its Opus 4.6 and Sonnet 4.6 models, which the company says are improved at coding and complex tasks like working through spreadsheets or filling out forms.
- Anthropic publicly pushed back against Pentagon demands to loosen guardrails on its AI models, stating the company drew "red lines" around mass surveillance and fully autonomous lethal weapons.
Why it matters: The upgrade targets users locked into ChatGPT or Gemini by removing the friction of rebuilding a personalized AI history, intensifying the consumer-AI switching war at a moment when Anthropic is gaining traction via Claude Code, Claude Cowork, and its new Opus 4.6 and Sonnet 4.6 models — and openly staking out ethical ground against Pentagon pressure.
