President Donald Trump has blacklisted Anthropic over its pushback
against the use of its tech for mass surveillance and autonomous weapons
FILE PHOTO © Win McNamee / Getty Images
[RT] US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has formally designated artificial intelligence firm Anthropic a “supply-chain risk to national security,” following US President Donald Trump’s order to blacklist the company across the federal government.
Hegseth
announced the decision on Friday, accusing the company of attempting to
impose ideological constraints on US military operations after
Anthropic refused to remove safeguards limiting the use of its
artificial intelligence systems for mass surveillance and fully
autonomous weapons.
“Their true objective is unmistakable: to seize veto power over the operational decisions of the United States military,” Hegseth said in a statement posted on social media. “That is unacceptable... The Department of War must have full, unrestricted access to Anthropic’s models for every lawful purpose in defense of the Republic.”
“I am directing the Department of War to designate Anthropic a Supply-Chain Risk to National Security... This decision is final,” Hegseth stated.
The
designation would bar any contractor, supplier, or partner working with
the US military from engaging in commercial activity with Anthropic,
significantly widening the impact beyond the Pentagon itself. Defense
officials said the company will be permitted to continue providing
services for up to six months to allow military systems to transition to
alternative providers.
The move follows Trump’s sweeping
directive ordering federal agencies to halt use of Anthropic technology
after the company resisted Pentagon demands to lift contractual limits
governing how its flagship AI model, Claude, could be deployed.
Anthropic has maintained two non-negotiable restrictions:
prohibitions on mass domestic surveillance and on fully autonomous
weapons operating without meaningful human control. Pentagon officials
argue such safeguards could hinder operational flexibility during
military crises.
The “supply-chain risk” designation –
typically reserved for companies linked to foreign adversaries – marks
an extraordinary step against a US-based technology firm deeply embedded
in national security operations.
Anthropic was the first and only
commercial AI developer to deploy advanced language models on
classified Pentagon networks under a contract valued at up to $200
million. Its systems have supported intelligence analysis and military
operational planning, including the raid that targeted Venezuelan
President Nicolas Maduro.