Judge Blocks Pentagon's Bid to Blacklist AI Firm Anthropic
A US federal judge has struck down the Pentagon's decision to label Anthropic a national security risk, ruling it constituted unlawful retaliation. The dispute stemmed from disagreements over military use of Anthropic's Claude AI models.
A federal judge in California ruled Thursday that the Trump administration acted unlawfully when it designated AI company Anthropic a national security threat. US district judge Rita Lin vacated defense secretary Pete Hegseth's February 27 decision to brand Anthropic a "supply-chain risk," a designation that barred the firm from federal contracts, calling the move "arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and otherwise not in accordance with law."
The ruling also lifted a related measure that had blocked military contractors and suppliers from doing business with Anthropic. In her 59-page decision, Lin wrote that while the Department of War remains free to choose whichever AI vendor it prefers, the sweeping restrictions placed on Anthropic were illegal and without basis. She further found that nine federal agencies—including the Pentagon, the Treasury Department, the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security—had wrongly imposed sanctions on the company, all of which are now void. The Pentagon, however, is still not obligated to use Anthropic's models.
The conflict traces back to failed negotiations over a $200 million contract for military use of Anthropic's Claude models. Tensions escalated after reports emerged that Claude had been used in the operation to capture Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, prompting an Anthropic employee to raise concerns about how the technology was being deployed. During talks, Anthropic sought limits on uses such as lethal autonomous weapons and mass surveillance, but Hegseth rejected any restrictions, insisting the contract permitted "all lawful use." After negotiations collapsed in February, Hegseth's blacklisting of Anthropic was widely viewed as retaliatory.
Anthropic responded by filing two lawsuits, arguing the Pentagon had violated its First and Fifth Amendment rights. Company spokesperson Danielle Cohen welcomed the ruling, saying Anthropic remains committed to working with the government on national security applications of AI. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment, though it is expected to appeal the decision.
