Anthropic digs in on AI standoff with the Pentagon

Anthropic has pressed for assurances its Claude AI won't be engaged in mass surveillance of Americans or used in autonomous weapons without human oversight

Dario Amodei, co-founder and chief executive officer of Anthropic, during a Bloomberg Television interview in San Francisco, California, US, on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025. ( David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Anthropic delivered a blunt message for the Pentagon: Thanks, but no thanks.

The AI start-up late Thursday rebuffed the Defense Department's latest offer to resolve a standoff over deploying Anthropic's Claude AI system for military purposes without restrictions. The Pentagon had imposed a 5:01 p.m. Friday deadline for Anthropic to yield to its demands, or face retaliation from the Trump administration.

At stake is a $200 million defense contract between Anthropic and........

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