Kicked Out by Trump, US Advanced Weapons Creator Loses in Court
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Anthropic, the developer of artificial intelligence behind advanced US military technologies, has lost in court. The federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. rejected Anthropic’s request to block the US Department of Defense (DOD) decision that placed the company on a blacklist.
This ruling means Anthropic, whose AI models are used in defence projects and secret military networks, remains barred from engaging in Pentagon contracts while the legal process continues.
The court assessed that the government’s interests outweigh the potential losses to the company. “In our view, the balance here favours the government,” the appeals court wrote in its decision, quoted from CNBC International, Thursday (9/4/2026).
“On one side, there is the risk of relatively limited financial loss to one private company. On the other side is the judicial management of how, and through whom, the Department of War secures vital AI technology during active military conflict,” they added.
As a result, defence contractors are not allowed to use Anthropic’s Claude AI model in military projects. However, the technology can still be used outside of Department of Defense contracts.
National security risk
The Pentagon previously designated Anthropic as a “supply chain risk” in early March. This label means the use of the company’s technology is considered potentially threatening to US national security.
This step was quite surprising because Anthropic was actually the first company to implement an AI model in the DOD’s secret networks. The technology was even praised for its ability to integrate with major defence contractors like Palantir.
The company had also secured a US$200 million contract with the Pentagon in July. However, further negotiations regarding the use of AI on the GenAI.mil platform stalled midway.
The source of the problem stems from differing interests. The Pentagon wants full access to the AI model for various military needs. Meanwhile, Anthropic requested assurances that its technology would not be used for fully autonomous weapons or domestic mass surveillance.
This disagreement led to a political decision. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth declared Anthropic a supply chain risk, followed by an order from President Donald Trump for federal agencies to “immediately cease” using the company’s technology.
Interim US Attorney General Todd Blanche welcomed the court ruling as a government victory. He called the decision a major win for military readiness.
“Military authority and operational control lie with the Commander-in-Chief and the Department of War, not a technology company,” he wrote.
Although temporarily defeated, Anthropic remains optimistic. The company stated it is confident that the court will ultimately rule that the supply chain risk designation is invalid.