A U.S. federal judge ruled the Pentagon’s decision to blacklist artificial intelligence firm Anthropic was illegal and baseless. The court order prevents the Pentagon from designating Anthropic as a national security supply-chain risk. This status previously barred the company from specific military contracts.
The dispute followed Anthropic’s refusal to allow its Claude AI models for military uses like surveillance and autonomous weapons. Anthropic cited safety and ethical concerns for this restriction.
U.S. District Judge Rita Lin stated that national security claims do not grant a blank check to punish government critics. Anthropic argued the designation was retaliation for public criticism and could cost the company billions in lost business.