Trump Directs Federal Agencies to Stop Using Anthropic AI
US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that he would instruct every federal agency to immediately cease using technology developed by AI firm Anthropic.
"We don't need it, we don't want it, and will not do business with them again!" Trump stated in a Truth Social post issued nearly an hour before a Pentagon deadline requiring Anthropic to grant unrestricted access to its AI tools.
Trump's directive followed Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei's declaration the previous day that the company would not comply with such demands, citing concerns that its AI technology could be employed for mass surveillance and fully autonomous weapons systems.
Trump indicated that Anthropic's tools would be phased out from all government operations over the next six months.
Before Trump's announcement, Anthropic had communicated that if the US Department of Defense (DoD) decided to discontinue use of its tools due to the company's commitment to maintaining safety guardrails, it would "work to enable a smooth transition to another provider."
"They better get their act together, and be helpful during this phase out period, or I will use the Full Power of the Presidency to make them comply, with major civil and criminal consequences to follow," Trump warned.
Anthropic did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Industry Support for Anthropic's Position
Anthropic appeared to gain support for its stance against government demands on Friday.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman expressed solidarity with Amodei, stating in a staff memo that he shared the same "red lines."
Altman wrote that any OpenAI contracts with the defense sector would also reject applications deemed "unlawful or unsuited to cloud deployments, such as domestic surveillance and autonomous offensive weapons."
During a meeting with Amodei on Tuesday, Pentagon official Hegseth made two seemingly conflicting threats: invoking the Defense Production Act to compel use of Anthropic's products as the government saw fit, and labeling Anthropic a "supply chain risk," effectively deeming the company insecure for government use.
Amodei responded on Thursday that he would prefer to cease working with the Pentagon rather than acquiesce to such pressures.
Anthropic's Concerns and Government Position
Anthropic objects to potential government uses of its AI tools, including its chatbot Claude, in two key areas: "mass domestic surveillance" and "fully autonomous weapons."
The DoD has stated it is not seeking to use Anthropic's technology for these purposes but requires the company to accept "any lawful use" of its tools.
However, US legislation specifically addressing AI tools and capabilities remains limited.
Emil Michael, Undersecretary of Defence, posted multiple messages on X following Amodei's refusal to comply with Hegseth's demands, including personal criticisms of Amodei and accusations that he sought to override Congress and defy democratically enacted laws.
"Dario Amodei wants to override Congress and make his own rules to defy democratically decided laws," Michael wrote in one post.
Tech Community's Response and Background
Within the technology sector, support for Anthropic's CEO has been growing.
Amodei is a well-known figure in AI, having been an early employee at OpenAI before leaving with several colleagues to found Anthropic following disagreements with Altman.
The two companies now compete directly, offering AI chatbots, agents, and other tools to users and corporate clients.
Altman acknowledged in his memo, "I do not fully understand how things got here; I do not know why Anthropic did their deal with the Pentagon and Palantir in the way they originally did it."
"But regardless of how we got here, this is no longer just an issue between Anthropic and the DoW; this is an issue for the whole industry and it is important to clarify our stance."
In 2024, Anthropic entered into a partnership with Palantir, a major government contractor, enabling Claude's integration within Palantir's government products.
The Department of War (DoW) is an alternative name for the Defense Department, established under an executive order signed by President Trump in September.
Altman added that OpenAI was "going to see if there is a deal with the DoW that allows our models to be deployed in classified environments and that fits with our principles."
Analysis and Contract Details
A former DoD official, speaking anonymously, told the BBC that Anthropic appeared to hold the upper hand in this dispute.
"This is great PR for them and they simply do not need the money," the former official said.
Anthropic's contract with the Pentagon is valued at $200 million. The company's latest valuation, announced earlier this month, estimated its worth at $380 billion based on current revenue and projected earnings.
The former official also described the DoD's threats to invoke the Defense Production Act or label Anthropic a supply chain risk as "extremely flimsy."
Should Hegseth follow through on these threats, Anthropic could potentially pursue legal action against the Defense Department or individual officials.
Tech Workers' Opposition to Pentagon Demands
On Friday morning, groups representing approximately 700,000 tech workers from Amazon, Google, and Microsoft—companies with their own Defense Department contracts—signed an open letter urging their employers to "refuse to comply" with the Pentagon's demands.
"Tech workers are united in our stance that our employers should not be in the business of war," stated the elected Executive Board of the Alphabet Workers Union.
The BBC has requested a response from Google regarding these concerns.
for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? here.
