Anthropic Refuses Pentagon’s Open Security Restriction Request, Trump Orders Ban

BlockBeats News, February 28: The Pentagon has asked Anthropic to remove the security restrictions on "autonomous killer robots" and "mass surveillance" built into Claude. Otherwise, they will lose a $200 million contract and be labeled a supply chain risk. Anthropic refused to make a written commitment, with co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei responding firmly, "These threats cannot change our position. We cannot in good conscience comply with their request."

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also voiced support for Anthropic on CNBC, stating, "I don't think the Pentagon should make this kind of threat. Despite many disagreements I have with Anthropic, they are trustworthy in the security field." The AI field's two fiercest competitors have just drawn this red line in public, and at last week's India AI Summit, Sam Altman and Dario Amodei even refused to shake hands in a group photo. Meanwhile, 70 OpenAI employees have signed an open letter titled "We Will Not Divide," and Google engineers have also come out in support.

Trump responded strongly: I have instructed every federal agency of the U.S. government to immediately stop using Anthropic's technology. We don't need it, we don't want it, and we won't do business with them again! Agencies like the Department of War that use Anthropic products will have a six-month phased elimination period. Anthropic had better perform well during this phase-out period, provide assistance, or I will use the full power of the presidency to compel compliance, and they will face significant civil and criminal consequences.