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Gone quiet · last update Sep 25, 2026 / Anthropic

The Pentagon's fight with Anthropic over AI safeguards

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

In early 2026 the Pentagon clashed with the AI company Anthropic, the maker of the Claude chatbot, after Anthropic refused to drop safeguards on how the military could use its technology.[1][2] Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth designated the company a "supply chain risk," a move that could force other contractors to stop using Claude, and Anthropic sued.[3][4] A federal judge in California ruled in August that the designation was illegal, but in September a federal appeals court in Washington upheld the Pentagon's effective blacklisting in a 2-1 decision.[5][6]

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth designated the company a "supply chain risk," a move that could force other contractors to stop using Claude, and Anthropic sued.[3][4] A federal judge in California ruled in August that the designation was illegal, but in September a federal appeals court in Washington upheld the Pentagon's effective blacklisting in a 2-1 decision.[5][6]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2026-02-23 (UTC): 19%, 35 of 186 tracked outlets (12 left, 14 center, 9 right)Week of 2026-03-02 (UTC): 12%, 21 of 175 tracked outlets (6 left, 9 center, 6 right)Week of 2026-03-09 (UTC): 22%, 37 of 166 tracked outlets (11 left, 18 center, 8 right)Week of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): 15%, 25 of 170 tracked outlets (6 left, 12 center, 7 right)Week of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): 8%, 36 of 466 tracked outlets (10 left, 18 center, 8 right)Week of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-21 (UTC): 8%, 37 of 479 tracked outlets (9 left, 20 center, 8 right)Week of 2026-09-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 9 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (6 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Sep 21, 2026920837 of 4798%
Aug 24, 20261018836 of 4668%
Mar 23, 2026612725 of 17015%
Mar 9, 20261118837 of 16622%
Mar 2, 202669621 of 17512%
Feb 23, 20261214935 of 18619%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Sep 25, 2026 · first reported · Headline from Omaha World-Herald

    Appeals court upholds Anthropic blacklisting

Background

In February Hegseth planned to meet Anthropic's chief executive, Dario Amodei; Anthropic was the only major AI company not supplying its technology to a new internal military network.[7] Amodei said the company "cannot in good conscience accede" to the Pentagon's demands for unrestricted use.[2] OpenAI reached its own agreement with the department, and its chief executive, Sam Altman, later said the company had moved too quickly and revised it to address concerns about surveillance.[8]

In March the administration followed through on its threat to designate Anthropic a supply chain risk,[3] and Anthropic sued.[4] Microsoft backed Anthropic's request to block the designation,[9] and US District Judge Rita Lin temporarily blocked it.[10] In August Lin ruled that the designation violated the law and ordered it removed,[5] but in September the appeals court in the District of Columbia ruled in a separate case that the Pentagon could blacklist the company's technology.[6][11]

Supporting stories (11)
  1. Anthropic refuses to bend to Pentagon on AI safeguards as dispute nears deadline
  2. Anthropic CEO says AI company ‘cannot in good conscience accede’ to Pentagon’s demands
  3. Pentagon labels AI company Anthropic a supply chain risk
  4. Anthropic sues Trump administration seeking to undo 'supply chain risk' designation
  5. Judge says Pentagon's measures against Anthropic were 'illegal and baseless'
  6. Federal court says US government can label Anthropic a supply chain risk
  7. Hegseth and Anthropic CEO set to meet as debate intensifies over the military's use of AI
  8. OpenAI revising Pentagon contract; CEO Altman admits 'sloppy' deal
  9. Microsoft backs Anthropic, urging a judge to halt Pentagon’s actions against AI company
  10. Judge blocks Pentagon from labeling Anthropic AI a "supply chain risk" and halts Trump
  11. Federal appeals court rules Pentagon’s blacklist of Anthropic was legal

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 12 recorded updates

September 2026

  1. Federal appeals court rules Pentagon’s blacklist of Anthropic was legalHeadline from ABC 17 Mid-Missouri · 23 outlets
  2. Federal court says US government can label Anthropic a supply chain riskHeadline from KOB 4 · 15 outlets

August 2026

  1. Judge says Pentagon's measures against Anthropic were 'illegal and baseless'Headline from WFMZ Allentown · 42 outlets

March 2026

  1. Judge blocks Pentagon from labeling Anthropic AI a "supply chain risk" and halts TrumpHeadline from CBS News · 26 outlets
  2. Microsoft backs Anthropic, urging a judge to halt Pentagon’s actions against AI companyHeadline from The Columbian · 6 outlets
  3. Anthropic sues Trump administration seeking to undo 'supply chain risk' designationHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 40 outlets
  4. Pentagon labels AI company Anthropic a supply chain riskHeadline from Wyoming Public Media · 17 outlets

February 2026

  1. OpenAI revising Pentagon contract; CEO Altman admits 'sloppy' dealHeadline from KTVU San Francisco · 12 outlets
  2. Anthropic CEO says AI company ‘cannot in good conscience accede’ to Pentagon’s demandsHeadline from Seattle Times · 14 outlets
  3. Trump orders federal agencies to stop using Anthropic in dispute over AI safetyHeadline from KTVU San Francisco · 17 outlets
  4. Anthropic refuses to bend to Pentagon on AI safeguards as dispute nears deadlineHeadline from ABC 7 New York · 17 outlets
  5. Hegseth and Anthropic CEO set to meet as debate intensifies over the military's use of AIHeadline from KOB 4 · 7 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →