Anthropic Sues US Department of Defence Over Supply Chain Risk Blacklisting
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Anthropic has sued the US Department of Defence after the government agency designated the AI company, creator of the Claude model, as a supply chain risk.
The supply chain risk label is typically assigned to entities deemed to pose a potential threat to national security and obligates companies or organisations working with the Pentagon to refrain from using products or services from the labelled entity.
According to Tech Crunch on Monday 9 March local time, in court documents filed in federal courts in California and Washington, D.C., Anthropic stated the designation came following weeks of disputes with the Department of Defence regarding military access to the company’s AI systems.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth previously stated that the Pentagon should have access to AI systems for “any legitimate purpose” and should not be restricted by private contractors.
Anthropic views the decision as retaliation for the company’s stance on AI safety and transparency in development.
“The Constitution does not permit the government to use its vast power to punish a company for constitutionally protected free speech,” the lawsuit states.
President Donald Trump and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth previously criticised Anthropic and its CEO, Dario Amodei, for being overly radical on AI security matters.
Furthermore, the company alleges Trump acted beyond his authority when he ordered all federal agencies to cease using Anthropic technology.
Following that order, the General Services Administration (GSA) terminated Anthropic’s “OneGov” contract, which previously allowed the company’s services to be used by government agencies.
The company also filed a separate lawsuit in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to review and overturn the Department of Defence’s decision designating Anthropic as a supply chain risk to national security.
An Anthropic spokesperson stated that these legal measures are necessary to protect the company’s business, customers, and partners, whilst reaffirming the company’s commitment to leveraging AI to support national security and its openness to dialogue with the government.