US Defense Secretary Issues Ultimatum to Anthropic
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has threatened to remove Anthropic from the Department of Defense's supply chain if the company refuses to permit its artificial intelligence (AI) technology to be utilized across military applications.
The warning was delivered during a Pentagon meeting on Tuesday, which Hegseth had requested with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, according to a source familiar with the discussions who spoke to the BBC.
"We continued good-faith conversations about our usage policy to ensure Anthropic can continue to support the government's national security mission in line with what our models can reliably and responsibly do,"Anthropic stated in a public release.
A senior Pentagon official indicated that Anthropic has until Friday evening to comply with the department's requirements.
A source told the BBC that the tone of the meeting between Hegseth and Amodei was cordial, but Amodei clarified Anthropic's firm boundaries.
Anthropic's Red Lines on AI Military Use
Among the company's key restrictions is the prohibition of its AI technology being involved in autonomous kinetic operations, where AI systems make final military targeting decisions without human oversight.
Another significant limitation is the use of Anthropic's tools for mass domestic surveillance, which the company considers unacceptable.
However, the Pentagon official clarified to the BBC that the current dispute does not concern the use of autonomous weapons or mass surveillance.
Potential Use of Defense Production Act
The official further explained that if Anthropic does not comply, Secretary Hegseth intends to invoke the Defense Production Act against the company.
This action could legally compel Anthropic executives to permit unrestricted Pentagon use of their AI technology on national security grounds.
Simultaneously, the Pentagon plans to designate Anthropic as a supply chain risk, which could impact the company's standing in government contracts.
Following the meeting, an Anthropic spokesperson conveyed that Amodei
"expressed appreciation for the Department's work and thanked the Secretary for his service".
Anthropic’s Role in AI and Military Contracts
Anthropic is the developer of the AI chatbot Claude and was among four AI companies awarded contracts by the Pentagon last summer.
Other recipients include Google, OpenAI (creator of ChatGPT), and Elon Musk's xAI, which produces the AI chatbot Grok. Each company received contracts valued up to $200 million (£148 million).
Defense Department official Emil Michael has previously stated that the agency seeks to have OpenAI, Google, xAI, and Anthropic enable the Pentagon to
"be able to use any model for all lawful use cases."
Anthropic has consistently positioned itself as adopting a more safety-focused approach to AI research compared to its competitors.
The company regularly publishes safety reports on its products for public review.
One such report from the previous year acknowledged that its AI technology had been
"weaponised" by hackers who used it to conduct sophisticated cyber-attacks.
Anthropic's reputation faced scrutiny after reports emerged that the US military employed its AI model Claude during the operation that led to the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January.
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