Trump administration illegally retaliated against Anthropic, judge rules
The AI startup has been at loggerheads with the Pentagon over the use of AI by the US military.
A judge has determined that the Trump administration engaged in illegal retaliation against the artificial intelligence (AI) startup Anthropic. The US Department of Defense's decision to label Anthropic a supply chain risk was deemed "illegal and baseless" by the court.
Anthropic had filed a lawsuit contending that Defense Secretary Pete Hegeth exceeded his authority with this new designation. This action by the Defense Department came after Anthropic declined to permit the military to utilize its AI models for applications such as surveillance or autonomous weapons.
In her ruling, US district judge Rita Lin stated that invoking national security "is not a blank check to punish and retaliate against government critics."
Anthropic has expressed its satisfaction with the ruling. The BBC has reached out to both the Pentagon and the White House for their comments.
A spokesperson for Anthropic affirmed the company's commitment to "working productively with the government to harness AI for our national security so all Americans benefit from this technology."
Anthropic's lawsuit characterized the government's actions as both "unprecedented and unlawful." The designation of Anthropic as a supply-chain risk was based on a law intended to safeguard military systems from foreign sabotage. This marked the first instance of an American company being publicly given such a designation.
The creator of the Claude AI model stated that its models lacked the necessary reliability for safe deployment in military weapons systems. The company also voiced its opposition to the use of its technology for domestic surveillance, viewing it as a violation of rights.
At the time, the Pentagon asserted that private companies should not be able to restrict military operations.
The White House had previously described Anthropic as "a radical left, woke company" attempting to dictate military activity. It argued that the military was bound by the US Constitution, "not any woke AI company's terms of service."
Anthropic's lawsuit claimed that the government's actions had negatively affected its business and infringed upon its right to freedom of speech.
During an earlier phase of the lawsuit, Judge Lin commented that the government appeared to be attempting to "cripple" the company and "chill public debate" regarding the military's use of AI.
The judge further remarked, "This appears to be classic First Amendment retaliation."