Pentagon Ends Use of Anthropic AI Tools After Blacklisting
The Defense Department has ceased using Anthropic products months after labeling the company a national security supply-chain risk.
KEY POINTS
- Pentagon confirms it has ceased using Anthropic AI products as of this week.
- Hegseth blacklisted Anthropic in February over refusal to remove safety guardrails.
- Claude models were still used for intelligence and Iran operations until recently.
- Anthropic has sued the administration, calling the blacklisting unlawful.
- Pentagon has since contracted with Google, xAI, and OpenAI for AI tools.
The U.S. Department of Defense has stopped using Anthropic's AI tools, a Pentagon official confirmed to the BBC on Monday. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth designated the company a national security supply-chain risk in February and ordered a halt to its use by late August, though the reason for the delay remains unclear.
Sources familiar with the matter said Anthropic's Claude model was still in use as recently as last week for research, intelligence analysis, and military operations against Iran. Former defense officials and contractors described the tool as critical for processing vast amounts of classified information.
“The move was "unprecedented and unlawful"”
The standoff began when the Pentagon pressed Anthropic to remove safety guardrails from Claude to grant the military unfettered access. Anthropic refused, citing concerns over mass surveillance and autonomous weapons, prompting Hegseth's risk designation—a measure typically reserved for foreign adversaries.
Anthropic called the designation "unprecedented and unlawful" and has sued the Trump administration to overturn it. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has signed new AI contracts with Google, xAI, and OpenAI, with OpenAI tools seeing wider adoption in recent months.
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