Artificial Intelligence

Judge Says Trump's Clampdown on Anthropic Violates the First Amendment

A judge ruled the Pentagon's supply chain risk designation of Anthropic was an unlawful, “arbitrary,” and “capricious” decision made to punish Anthropic.

Tosin Akintola | 8.28.2026 3:41 PM

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Anthropic was never a legitimate national security risk. 

That's the takeaway from Thursday's decision in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Judge Rita Lin ruled that the Trump administration violated the First Amendment and unlawfully retaliated against Anthropic for engaging in "constitutionally protected expressive activities" when it designated the company as a supply chain risk. Lin also found the government's actions violate the Fifth Amendment's Due Process Clause "because they deprive Anthropic of constitutionally protected liberty interests without sufficient pre-deprivation notice or opportunity to be heard." 

The legal battle between the AI firm and the government started in February, when........

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