Anthropic weighs in on Secretary Hegseth's comments: Here's what we know

Anthropic has responded to the comments made by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who directed the Pentagon to label the AI firm Anthropic as a 'supply chain risk.'

The company has addressed the Secretary of War's comments, saying, “This action follows months of negotiations that reached an impasse over two exceptions we requested to the lawful use of our AI model, Claude: the mass domestic surveillance of Americans and fully autonomous weapons.”

The company reaffirmed its stance, stating, “No amount of intimidation or punishment from the Department of War will change our position on mass domestic surveillance or fully autonomous weapons.”

On the other hand, President Donald Trump has jumped in, sharing a post on Truth Social on Friday, February 28, directing the federal agencies to remove, over time, the use of Anthropic's technology.

President Trump said he is “directing all federal agencies in the United States Government to IMMEDIATELY CEASE all use of Anthropic’s technology. There will be a Six Month phase out period for Agencies like the Department of War who are using Anthropic’s products at various levels.”

Meanwhile, a follow-up post on X by Hegseth ordered that all contractors, suppliers, and partners doing business with the U.S. military cease any 'commercial activity with Anthropic' with immediate effect.

Hegseth concluded the post while reiterating that the decision is final, writing, “America’s warfighters will never be held hostage by the ideological whims of Big Tech. This decision is final.”

While responding to the decision, Anthropic described it as 'legally unfound' and said it would set a dangerous precedent for any American company that negotiates with the government.

Announcing the court filing, the company said, "No amount of intimidation or punishment from the DoW will change our position on mass domestic surveillance or fully autonomous weapons. We will challenge any supply chain risk designation in court.”

The decision comes after weeks of negotiations between the Pentagon and Anthropic over the use of its AI models by the U.S. military.