US Court Blocks Pentagon Ban on AI Company Anthropic

A US federal judge has blocked the Defense Department's decision to blacklist technology company Anthropic, according to a 59-page ruling issued Thursday evening. District Judge Rita Lin concluded the Pentagon acted illegally in determining the company posed a risk to national supply chain security.

The ruling marks the latest twist in the high-stakes confrontation between the maker of the AI model Claude and the US military over the safe use of artificial intelligence on the battlefield. The government is expected to appeal the decision.

In her ruling, Judge Lin rebuked the Pentagon, saying it targeted and punished Anthropic for the company's public criticism of the Defense Department's stance on battlefield AI deployment. She wrote: "Invoking national security as a hollow mantra is not a blank check to punish and retaliate against government critics."

Autonomous weapons and domestic surveillance

Anthropic's lawsuit in federal court in California accused Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth of exceeding his authority when he designated the company a national supply chain security risk. Hegseth's move, which barred Anthropic from military contracts, came after the company refused to allow the military to use its Claude AI models for US surveillance or autonomous weapons.

Anthropic argued that AI models are not yet reliable enough for autonomous weapons and objected to domestic surveillance operations. Meanwhile, the Pentagon maintained that private companies should not restrict military operations. Executives said the ban could cost the company billions of dollars in lost business opportunities.

At a hearing on July 30, Judge Lin described the government's position as "genuinely troubling" and "in conflict with the First Amendment," adding that the record "gets worse for the government" over time. In the same hearing, Justice Department lawyers argued that the nature of AI models is "too large and opaque" for the Pentagon to assess them like ordinary physical hardware.

First use of little-known regulation

Anthropic welcomed the ruling, stating it remains "focused on working productively with the government to harness AI for national security so that all Americans can benefit from this technology."

The designation marked the first time a US company was publicly labeled a supply chain risk under a little-known procurement rule designed to protect military systems from foreign sabotage.

In its complaint, Anthropic accused the government of violating constitutional rights to free speech and due process by retaliating against the company's views on AI safety without allowing it to rebut the allegations. The complaint called the decision illegal, not based on fact, and inconsistent with the military's previous praise for Claude.

There was no immediate comment from the Pentagon on the ruling.