What is the Anthropic clash with Pentagon over military’s AI use, amid West Asia crisis?

Key Highlights

• company. More from Tech Amazon's cloud unit reports fire after objects hit UAE data center Nvidia plans a new chip to speed AI processingAnthropic said it would challenge what it called a legally unsound action “never before publicly applied to an American company.”The looming legal battle could have huge implications on the balance of power in Big Tech during a critical juncture, as well as the rules governing military use of AI and other guardrails that are set up to prevent a technology from posing threats to human life. The dustup already has resulted in a coup for ChatGPT maker OpenAI, which seized upon an opportunity to step into the void to make its technology available to the Pentagon after Anthropic objected to some of the Trump administration’s terms.
• It’s a turn of events likely to deepen the animosity between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who was temporarily ousted by his own board in late 2023 over questions about his trustworthiness, and Amodei, who left OpenAI in 2021 to launch Anthropic partly because of concerns about AI safety. Quick ReadsView AllNvidia plans a new chip to speed AI processingAmazon's cloud unit reports fire after objects hit UAE data centerImplications of being designated a supply chain riskThe Department of Defense’s move to label Anthropic a risk to the nation’s defense supply chain will end its up to $200 million contract with the AI company.
• It will also, according to the Pentagon, prohibit other defense contractors from doing business with Anthropic. Trump wrote on Truth Social that most government agencies must immediately stop using Anthropic’s AI but gave the Pentagon a six-month period to phase out the technology that is already embedded in military platforms. Anthropic argues that Hegseth doesn’t have the legal authority to stop business relationships with other defense contractors.
• Any company that still holds a commercial contract with Anthropic can continue to use its products for non-defense projects, the company wrote in a statement. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS ADThe supply chain risk designation was created to give American military leaders a way to limit the Pentagon’s exposure to companies posing a potential security risk.
• The list has typically included firms with ties to adversaries, such as telecom giant Huawei, which has links to China, or cybersecurity specialist Kaspersky, which has links to Russia. In the case of Anthropic, the designation serves as a warning to other AI and defense companies: Fail to meet our demands and you.