Trump administration illegally retaliated against Anthropic, judge rules

What the report says

A US federal judge has ruled that the Department of Defense acted unlawfully when it labeled AI startup Anthropic a supply-chain risk, saying the designation was illegal and baseless. The ruling, reported by BBC World News, centers on a dispute between Anthropic and the Pentagon over how the company’s AI models could be used by the US military.

According to the report, Anthropic sued after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved the designation, which the company said went beyond the Pentagon’s authority and came after it declined to permit military uses such as surveillance and autonomous weapons. Judge Rita Lin said national security concerns do not give the government free rein to punish critics, and earlier in the case she described the action as an attempt to pressure the company and discourage debate over military uses of AI.

The Pentagon’s February decision was unusual because supply-chain risk labels are generally used for companies tied to countries seen as threats to the US, and this was the first public designation of an American company under that approach. Anthropic argued the move hurt its business and violated free speech protections. In response to the ruling, the company said it wants to work constructively with the government on national security uses of AI. The BBC said it had sought comment from the Pentagon and the White House.